Big Brother
by FanaticChick
Summary: What if Valka had not been taken so early in Hiccup's life? What if she managed to bear Stoick another son nine years after their first before disappearing? Set during the first movie, Hiccup is faced balancing between repairing his broken bond with his father, keeping his new Night Fury friend a secret, and raising his little brother, Tryggr: his best friend, his world, his family
1. Stories and Raids

_Howdy folks :) Been a while since I uploaded, but thank you so much for the support on 'Growth Spurt' :) every favourite and review made my day! I've actually had so many ideas for httyd fics lately and I've been writing a lot, the biggest problem was deciding which one to focus on the most and upload first, lol!_

_Anyway, I decided to do this one first :) This idea was inspired by a oneshot called "What It Means To Be A Brother" by Lady Elfensenf (seriously guys, you have to read it! It's so adorable! But sad at the same time, so be warned) and I just fell in love with the idea of Hiccup being a big brother XD, so I created this. I've set this during the first movie, but I dunno, if this turns out successful I might make a mini-series of oneshots set in a lot of different moments. To include Hiccup's little brother though, I've ended up changing the story behind when Valka disappeared and was taken by dragons, but that will all be explained as the story goes on. So just clarifying: Valka is both their mother, but she is taken away at a later stage of Hiccup's life._

_So yeah, here's hoping you like my fic :) Read on my fellow writers/readers/friends!_

_(side note: I can't edit 'Growth Spurt' so I just want to explain something: when I published the one shot, I had never heard of nor read 'Iron, Anvils, and the Odd Ones Out', so my scene between Hiccup and Gobber was purely coincidental! I meant no harm! But thank you to those who pointed it out! B.T.W., if you haven't read it yourself, you should! It's filled with all the Hiccup and Gobber family fluff XD)_

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><p><strong>Chapter One<strong>

_This is Berk. It's twelve days north of hopeless and a few degrees south of freezing to death. It's located solidly on the meridian of misery. My village. In a word: sturdy. It's been here for seven generations but every single building is new. We have fishing, hunting and a charming view of the sunsets! …the only problems… are the pests. While most places have mice, or mosquitoes, we have…_

"Dragons!"

Hiccup nearly cracked and fell over laughing when the little boy before him gasped loudly and ducked his head underneath his blankets, but he managed to remain still over the light of the candle and keep his 'terrifying' pose. Hiccup silently congratulated himself; the shadows dancing across the wooden walls were looking pretty spooky.

It was lucky the kid liked his stories in the first place, no matter how intimidating, otherwise Hiccup feared that their father would have killed him for terrifying the daylights out of his younger sibling.

It was only when two big green eyes peeked out from the cover when Hiccup resumed his tale.

"Everywhere! Out of every corner, out of every shadow! They came without warning, raining deadly lava from the skies!"

"How many?"

"Hundreds! No, wait! Thousands!"

"No way!"

"Way! Legend says it was the first time on Berk that Vikings were struck with fear from the mere sight of the deadly onslaught! All seemed hopeless; there was nothing they could do! Sheep were gone in moments, houses were turned to ash in seconds, limbs were ripped apart before you could even blink!"

The little boy started quivering slightly, but his wide eyes were still trained heavily on his older brother. Hiccup bit his lip. Okay. Maybe he was going a little too far this time with the whole limb ripping; but it was hard to stay on track. Tryggr loved his stories, he always insisted on one before he went to bed – especially on the nights when their father was out of the house. With Stoick there, Hiccup had to keep them tame, filled with trolls and silly seasick Vikings. With the Chief gone, however, the greatest battles could be told, filled with all the danger and excitement the little boy could ever ask for.

Quickly deciding he needed to bring in the 'hero' in order to avoid Tryggr from having nightmares for real, Hiccup changed his pose as though he were holding up a sword. "It was a lucky thing that He came along, indeed!"

"He?"

Hiccup scoffed mockingly. "He? You're seriously asking who He is? I'm ashamed of you, little brother!"

Tryggr leapt up from his bed, annoyed and curious. "Who is he?" he whined, bouncing impatiently on his knees.

Hiccup swiftly brought his arm up to his face, masking half of it in shadow. "The Night Warrior…" he whispered as dramatically as possible. He was received with an excited gasp and sparkling eyes, and he could not help but grin and mentally pat himself on the back for the idea of the bed time story.

"A deadly beast of a man who only came to fight out when the moon is at its highest peak, who draped himself in the darkest of clothing made of dragon skin – making him practically invisible to every living creature," he continued, edging away from the candle light and towards Tryggr very slowly, "wielding nothing more than a flaming sword to strike fear into the hearts of his enemies. As quick as a strike of lightning and just as deadly. A mysterious stranger with one purpose and one purpose alone."

"What?"

"To down every single dragon that dared to threaten the Archipelago…"

"'Specially Berk, huh?"

"Especially Berk! Why, he would have been crazy to miss out on a mighty battle such as this! Left!" Hiccup swiped his arms, pretending to wield a sword in order to captivate his brother further into the story. "Right! He attacked with all his power! Slaying dragons and mounting their heads on spears before they could even touch down on the soil and lay a single claw on the sheep! He was the bravest warrior Berk had ever seen and certainly the most deadly…"

Hiccup sighed dramatically and lowered his arms. "If only the dragons weren't so smart to realise this…"

Tryggr swallowed nervously. "What happened?"

Hiccup edged closer to Tryggr. "They could see how powerful the Night Warrior was; there was no stopping him. Even amongst dragons he was a fearful legend; most likely they told their hatchling the very same tale I'm telling you right now."

"You got this story off a dragon?"

Hiccup chuckled and rolled his eyes. "No, I didn't; now shush! We're getting to the good part!"

Tryggr leaned forward again eagerly, and Hiccup resumed his tale.

"They knew he had to be stopped at all costs if they were to survive. So, they laid waste to the islands, hoping to lure him in and snatch him up!"

"No!"

"Yes, I'm afraid so. And they were successful too."

"Did he die?"

"Not quite. The dragons weren't foolish, they knew they could use the Night Warrior to their advantage; why waste such a deadly weapon? So, with their dark and twisted magic, they lured him to their nest and forced him to change into something even more powerful, something equally terrifying…"

"What?"

"A dragon!"

A horrified gasp. "No way!"

"Yes way… They cast a spell upon our brave Night Warrior, manipulating his mind into believing that the Vikings were the Enemy instead. The dragons had done their work; and now, even to this very day he obeys only to them and commits treacherous deeds against those he once called allies."

Little Tryggr looked torn between awe and depression. "What happened to him?"

Hiccup smirked darkly. "These days, we no longer call him the Night Warrior. For those foolish enough to believe he turned on his own will-"

"No!"

"They became furious; so much so, they gave him a new title and fight with determination to down him and bring him to justice. Today, you may know him as the devil, or perhaps the offspring of lightning and death itself, but most likely by his title… The Night Fury!"

Tryggr gasped excitedly. "Really? He's the Night Fury? So that's why everyone wants to take him down!"

Hiccup ruffled his brother's striking red hair roughly, but affectionately. "Only if you're quick enough to catch him!"

Tryggr gave a squeal of protest and ducked away from Hiccup's palm. "You said it was gonna be you! You were gonna down the Night Fury!"

Hiccup smiled gratefully. "You're the only one who thinks so."

"Only 'cause you run away the quickest."

"Why you little-!"

Tryggr squealed loudly, but was unable to avoid his elder sibling when he suddenly grabbed him in an awkward headlock and vigorously rubbed the top of his head in a noogie. The little boy giggled and fought with all his might to escape the gangly arms.

"Do you surrender?" Hiccup challenged.

"Never!"

"Ok, you're asking for it!"

"No! No! Hahahahaha! Hi-Hiccup! S-stop! Hahahahaha! I give up! I give up!"

Hiccup stopped his tickling and released Tryggr with a satisfied smirk. "That's what I thought."

Tryggr only giggled and stuck out his tongue.

Hiccup glanced towards the window of their bedroom and sighed. "Okay, we'd better go to sleep. Dad will kill me if he finds out I let you stay up this late."

"Aw, but its only midnight!"

"Exactly, and I've gotta be up early tomorrow and so do you."

"One more story! Please!"

"No, it's time for bed now."

Tryggr pouted. "But I'm not tired!"

Hiccup smirked when his little brother struggled to hold back a yawn. "Yeah huh, sure thing, big guy." Before he could give the chance for the younger one to protest even further, Hiccup pushed back on his shoulders, lowering him back down onto his pallet. The boy continued to pout as his older brother pulled the covers over him, but his eyes were flickering closed in a slowly lost battle.

"Not tired," he mumbled, closing his eyes.

Hiccup only smiled and ruffled the boy's hair. "Goodnight, Tiger," he murmured, calling his brother by his nickname. It had purely been by mistake when he was born, that Hiccup could not pronounce his new sibling's name properly and always called him that. Yet now, five years later, it still stuck.

Tryggr was out cold before Hiccup could blow out the candle light.

Hiccup remained still for a while in his stance, contently watching Tryggr sleep peacefully and was overcome with a sense of calmness as he observed the way his little chest rose and fell rhythmically underneath the furs. It was no secret to anyone that Hiccup absolutely adored his little brother and loved him with all his heart. How could he not? The little boy was his only friend in the world; the only one who did not consider him as nothing more than a runt, an embarrassment to their father's name, a screw-up. To the youth, he was just Hiccup – his big, goofy brother who always found the time to play and tell the best stories that most Vikings had little to no patience for.

It was no surprise really that Tryggr was as equally fond of Hiccup. After all, most of the time his older sibling was all he had. Their father was the Chief of the village and never seemed to have the time for his two sons – though Hiccup highly suspected that his avoidance was due to the still burning grief over their late mother. Really, it was Hiccup who seemed to be raising the young lad most of the time; and neither boy had any complaint about the matter whatsoever.

Smiling contently, Hiccup retreated to his own bed and fell asleep rather quickly. He was exhausted. He really should not have stayed up so late to tell Tryggr's bedtime story; Gobber was going to get back at him for this for sure if he slept in.

Oh well, he thought tiredly, it was so worth it.

Tryggr's awe and joy always made it worth the effort.

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><p><em>Fwoosh!<em>

_SCREECH!_

_BOOM!_

Hiccup gave a start in his bed and nearly toppled out. With a gasp, he shot up, staring at the roof from which the loud sounds were erupting from. _Oh Gods_, he thought worriedly.

"Hiccup?"

Hiccup snapped his head back down to face his brother's bed directly opposite to his. Tryggr was sitting up, rubbing his right eye tiredly. "What's goin' on?" he mumbled, confused.

Hiccup silently cursed and jumped out of his bed, quickly pulling on his boots and fetching his fur vest. "Dragon raid. We have to get you out of here. Come on; let's get your boots on."

It took only a short minute to help his sleepy little brother put on his boots, but already Hiccup could tell it was getting worse outside. Many of the Villagers were beginning to shout out battle cries and several dragons were shrieking. He could spot glowing fires from outside their window. "C'mon, c'mon!" He ushered, grasping Tryggr's hand tightly and pulling him down the stairs to the main room. Their father still had not come home yet. Either that or he had already left to go and fight off the raid.

"I'll get you to the Great Hall with the other kids, alright? Same as usual," explained Hiccup as he grasped the door handle, going through usual procedure to reassure and calm Tryggr.

"Agh!" Tryggr yelped when they spotted a Monstrous Nightmare just outside of their household. Hiccup regained his senses just in time to pull the door closed and envelope his sibling in a protective hug that kept him away from the burning wood. He hissed in pain, feeling the heat singe his back.

He played it safe and waited for a minute before trying to leave the house again. Luckily, the Nightmare had moved on to fight one of the more powerful villagers. "Let's go!" He tugged a petrified Tryggr alongside, rushing towards the stairs to reach the Great Hall. It was lucky their house was so close, so their dash was not too long (though it still took a little while, as Hiccup had a tendency to trip over himself when running).

Upon reaching the huge doors, Hiccup bashed his fist rapidly against the wood, hoping for a quick answer. To his relief, the door opened slightly to reveal the village nurse who was in charge of watching over the children during dragon raids.

"I was wondering where you were," she scolded softly, ushering for Tryggr to enter.

He stood still, clutching onto Hiccup's arm tightly. Hiccup had to give him a small shove. "It's alright, I'll be back soon to collect you again."

"You promise?"

"Always, Tiger."

"Maybe you should head back inside yourself, Hiccup," said the nurse, frowning slightly as she pulled Tryggr into the hall.

Hiccup scowled. "Yeah, yeah, I'm on it," he grumbled when she pulled the door shut, but he still had just enough time to smile reassuringly to his sibling before it could be sealed.

However, Hiccup did not rush back to his home, as many passing villagers urged him to do with annoyance and frustration. Instead, he bee lined straight for the forge to help out with the weapons… and hopefully get to work with his bola shooter. He had to get out there. He had to kill a dragon. After all, Tryggr was probably expecting that.

"HICCUP!"

He yelped when he felt a giant hand grasp the back of his tunic, sweeping him off his feet just in time to avoid a Nadder's flame. He winced, realising it was his father.

"What is he doing out-? What are you doing out here?" Stoick the Vast yelled. "Where's your brother?"

"I-I took him to the Hall with the other kids," Hiccup mumbled rather pathetically.

"Get inside!" Stoick shouted, tossing Hiccup back onto the path. Hiccup huffed and scowled, but still ignored his orders and began to head for the forge once again, leaping over fallen weapons and patches of fire with awkward bounds.

"Oh, nice of ye ta join the party," said Gobber as he finally made it to the edge of the village where the building lay. He pulled of his vest and immediately replaced it with his leather apron. "I thought ye'd bin carried off!"

"What, who me? No, I'm waaay to muscular for their taste! They wouldn't know what to do with all… this!"

"Well, they need toothpicks, don't they?"

Besides Tryggr, Gobber was probably the only one on Berk who could tolerate Hiccup, even to the point of being considered a friend. Hiccup really hoped that was the case, as he had come to view his mentor as a sort of uncle (although in the deepest corners of his mind, the title 'father' could have even been considered). Tryggr liked him too. He told equally great stories.

The battle continued on into the morning, and after a small argument with Gobber after sorely wanting to join the other teens, especially that special someone, he became more determined than ever to get out onto the field and test his bola thrower.

He had to. He had to make his mark. He had to bring some sort of pride back to his family name and remove his 'useless' title.

He had to shoot down a Night Fury.

And as he rushed out, wheeling the strange device, he grinned eagerly. Just wait till Tryggr heard about what he had done!

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><p>…or maybe not.<p>

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><p>"…I mean I really actually hit it! You guys were busy and I had a really clear shot! It went down, just off Raven Point! Let's get a search party out there and-"<p>

"STOP!"

Tryggr, who had excitedly rushed out of the Great Hall when the Nurse deemed Berk to be in the clear, froze in his tracks, scared out of his wits. It was not an uncommon occurrence for his father to be angry with Hiccup, but he had not been this angry in a long time. Even Hiccup looked scared. Wisely, Tryggr decided to stay put until the storm blew over and twiddled his fingers nervously.

"Just…stop. Every time you step outside disaster falls! Can you not see that I have bigger problems? Winter is almost here and I have an entire village to feed!"

Hiccup pursed his lips and his eyes flickered to avoid Stoick's. "Well, between you and me the village could do with a little less feeding, don't you think?"

Tryggr giggled, though the sound was drowned out by outraged gasps.

"This isn't a joke, Hiccup!" Stoick shouted before sighing heavily. "Why can't you follow the simplest orders?" He nearly begged desperately.

"I-I can't stop myself! I see a dragon and I have to just… kill it! You know? It's who I am, Dad!"

Stoick sighed and buried his face in the palm of his hand. "Oh, you are… many things, Hiccup; but a dragon killer is not one of them."

Tryggr, noticing that his father had toned down quite significantly in volume, decided it was safe to approach his family. Without further hesitation, he broke away from the small crowd of children and rushed to Stoick and clung onto his leg, grateful that he had come back unscathed from battle again.

Some of the villagers laughed in good nature when Stoick was caught off guard, but others (namely Hiccup ad Gobber) frowned at the lack of any returned affection on the Chief's behalf.

"Are you okay, Tryggr?" asked Stoick, leaning down to pull his youngest son off of his leg.

"Yeah," said Tryggr with a simple smile. "Did ya get any dragons, Daddy?"

"Not enough," grumbled Stoick , though more to himself.

Hiccup was grateful that Tryggr's presence had calmed their father, for when Stoick looked back up to his teenage son he merely waved a dismissive hand and nudged the little boy over to him. "Just… just go home boys," he said lowly before turning to Gobber, "and make sure they get there. I have to clean up the mess…"

Tryggr skipped along happily, although he had to slow his pace as Hiccup had taken a firm hold of his hand again. It did not bother him the slightest, it just made him happy to know that Hiccup was back and okay after another raid too. He had kept his promise.

He jumped when there was a sudden loud cackle from one of the twins. He really didn't like those two, they were loud and mean, especially to the Haddock boys.

"Quite the performance," the boy praised mockingly.

"I've never seen anyone mess up that badly! That helped!" Then their cousin Snotlout approached the two, teasing Hiccup meanly.

Tryggr tried to scowl up at him, but Hiccup only pulled him along faster. "Thank you, thank you," he called back dejectedly, "I was trying, so…"

"Meanie!" Tryggr yelled back, angry. Now Hiccup was sad, and that made him sad.

"Flea!" Snotlout teased. That earned a smack in the head from Gobber.

"Tryggr, stop that!" Hiccup hissed angrily, tugging his struggling brother along. That made the little boy stop immediately. Hiccup was never angry with him, and he only ever called him by his real name if he was in severe trouble.

"Don't let 'em get to ya, lads" Gobber mumbled to them, leading the pair up to the house.

"I can't even be bothered," said Hiccup, "they'd never listen to me anyway if I tried. No one would. Not even Dad… You believe me, right? I really did hit one…"

"Sure, Hiccup."

"He never listens!"

"Well, it runs in the family."

"And when he does, it's always with this disappointed scowl, like someone skimped on the meat on his sandwich. Excuse me, bar maid!" Hiccup released Tryggr's hand and struck a pose, putting on a thick accent to imitate their father. "I'm afraid you brought me the wrong offspring! I ordered an extra-large boy with beefy arms for a firstborn! Extra guts and glory on the side! This here! This is a talking fishbone!"

Tryggr was laughing too much to notice the look of hurt on Hiccup's face; he barely even understood the context. All he understood was that his big brother was putting on a silly voice and trying to copy their father; it was funny. It was great!

"Now, yer thinkin' about this all wrong. It's no' so much what ye look like, it's what's inside that he can't stand."

"…thank you for summing that up."

Tryggr tilted his head, confused. "What do ya mean? Like his bones? Or his belly? Or his-"

"He doesn't mean any of that!" Hiccup snapped, irritated and tired. He slumped slightly in defeat. "Let's just… get inside."

Before either Tryggr or Gobber could stop him, the teen had already retreated into the confines of their home; either trusting that the youth would soon follow behind or too deep in his own thoughts to remember to take hold of his hand again.

Tryggr fiddled with his fingers again. "What's wrong with him, Gobber?"

Gobber shook his head. "Ah, he's just bein' a teenager; nothin' for ye to worry about too much, laddie."

"Oh. Okay."

"Just look after him, all right?" said Gobber, smiling down at the boy and ruffling his hair. Tryggr grumbled and tried to flatten it again. Only Hiccup was allowed to do that to him. Although he was a bit happy, having been given a responsibility. "Keep 'im happy."

"…If I do, will you tell me the story of how you lost your arm?"

"For the tenth time, not until yer older, ye cheeky bugger!"

Tryggr shrugged. Oh well, it was worth the try. "Bye, Gobber!" He called back as he finally made his way into the house after Hiccup. He left the door open long enough to hear the blacksmith return the farewell before pushing his whole body to shut the door. He huffed. It sucked being little. He could not wait to finally grow up like Hiccup.

Speaking of whom, he giggled excitedly upon finding his big brother walking down the stairs from their bedroom, clutching his journal in one hand and a charcoal pencil in the other. Tryggr rushed forward. "Did ya get any dragons, Hiccup? Did ya? Did ya? Did ya?" he asked, jumping around Hiccup.

Hiccup sighed. "I dunno," he replied slowly, choosing his words carefully. He laid a hand on Tryggr's shoulder to stop his bouncing, and once he had the boy's attention he kneeled down to face him at an equal level. "I need you to stay here," he instructed sternly, but nervously. "There's something I have to find out there, and I don't know when I'll be back."

Tryggr titled his head, confused. "But Daddy said that-"

"No. I have to get out there. It's actually for Dad that I have to do this for. Please, you have to understand just for now."

"What do ya hafta find?"

"I- er… it doesn't matter, I'll let you know if I find it." Hiccup did not want to get Tryggr's hopes up that he may have actually shot down the Night Fury; he could not stand the disappointment in his eyes if it did fail. "But you can't tell Dad, all right? No matter what. You promise?"

Wow, two responsibilities. Tryggr was starting to feel quite grown up. "I promise," he said honestly. He would not let his big brother down.

Hiccup smiled gratefully. "Thanks, Tiger. I'll be back as soon as I can…"

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><p><em>So, yeah, what do you think? I hope you enjoyed it :)<em>

_Please review and favourite if you did, it would mean the world to me :)_


	2. A Family Torn

_Hey everyone :) Wow, thank you for all the support! I'm so happy to see that you really like my idea and story! I'm also really amazed that you find that I'm writing this perfectly, as I was really worried this wasn't going to be in character or believable, so that means a lot to me :) For that reason I'm actually a bit nervous about this chapter, because I've based this off real life events that happened to a friend of mine years ago but I've manipulated it to fit Hiccup and Stoick for the story, so I hope you still like it._

_Just want to reply to a couple of things:_

_HamPickleSandwhich: Oh my gosh, thank you so much :) That was actually one of the the reasons I really wanted to write this, because in the majority of fics where Hiccup has a sibling it's always a big secret/plot-twist or there's something abnormal about them. I just wanted to portray a perfectly normal and adorable little brother who's biggest worry is whether or not he'll get his awesome bedtime story XD lol!_

_ Guest age 15 (and well, to everyone really): First, thank you :) Second, Tryggr is five years old, and I've made Hiccup fourteen (close to fifteen). Tryggr is pronounced as tree-ger (...I think. I was looking up pronunciations before I wrote this and I'm about 90% sure that's how it's said)._

_Guest: ...you'll just have to wait and see :)_

_caitycaterpillar: Where's the rest you may ask...? RIGHT HERE!_

_I hope you enjoy this next installment :)_

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><p><strong>Chapter Two<strong>

The sun had already set long ago, and Hiccup still had not returned. It frightened Tryggr. Especially now that their father had just come home. He just hoped Hiccup would come home quickly so that he did not have to get in trouble.

Instead of drawing attention as he normally did, Tryggr remained silent as Stoick crossed over the threshold, removing his helmet with a heavy sigh. The bigger Viking gave a start upon noticing his son seated very still at the table, scribbling away on a piece of parchment.

"Tryggr, I didn't see you there," he said, observing his youngest son with a stern yet curious look.

Tryggr continued looking up to his father, ceasing his drawing with hopeful eyes. "Are ya gonna be stayin' here tonight?" It had been so long since his father had been home for the night; many nights gone without a proper family meal, let alone a conversation; heck, he was even hopeful about being put to bed by his father for once instead of Hiccup. He just missed his Daddy. Usually it was thoughts like this that led the young boy to wonder about his mother too, but he had soon learnt that asking about her to his father and brother was a terrible idea; it always led to Stoick ignoring both boys even more than usual for days, and Hiccup would always pale and go very quiet for a long time.

Stoick only shook his head. "Where's your brother?" he grumbled.

Tryggr frowned despairingly and sighed. He remembered his promise to Hiccup and kept silent.

Stoick gave a heavy sigh of his own and pinched the bridge of his nose. "He's left the house, hasn't he?"

Tryggr bit his lip. "He'll be back soon." _He hoped…_

Stoick huffed, annoyed, and proceeded to manoeuvre around the back of the house, collecting bits and pieces as he went. Despite being upset over the realisation that his father would indeed not be staying for the night, and most likely for several more, Tryggr peeked up curiously. "Watcha doin'?" he asked softly.

"We're going out to search for the nest again," explained Stoick, collecting his travel basket and placing his collected supplies inside. "Before the ice sets in. I think we can finally find it this time."

Tryggr worriedly bit his quivering lip. "How long are ya gonna be gone for?"

Stoick picked up an axe sitting by the stairs and observed it carefully. "A few weeks, at the most. Which means you and Hiccup are going to have to look after yerselves until then."

Tryggr frowned. _Nothing different then…_

"Have you had yer night meal yet?" Stoick asked after a while, finally finishing his packing. Tryggr shook his head, no. Normally Hiccup would be the one serving it to him, or he would sometimes take him up to the Great Hall – it was exceptionally rare Stoick would join them.

Stoick grumbled under his breath, though Tryggr suspected it was directed more to Hiccup's disappearance than to his own inability to fetch his own food. He mumbled a quiet, "Thank you," when his father soon served him a small plate of bread and butter and dried yak strips along with a mug of water, and was soon tucking in rather hungrily. The thoughts only made him worry more. Hiccup really should have been back by now.

"It's pretty late, Tryggr," said Stoick after a few minutes of heavy silence, save for the young boy munching on his meal. "You best head up to bed right after, lad."

Tryggr pouted. "It's not that late, Daddy."

"It is for little Vikings who need their strength," said Stoick with a very rare smile. As if to only encourage his point, Tryggr struggled to hold back a wide yawn. It was rather late; but he could not sleep with his brother missing. He had to come back. He still had to tell him a bedtime story after all.

"But Hiccup-"

"I'll deal with him when he gets back. You worry about yerself," Stoick said firmly, nudging Tryggr's shoulder with his large palm to usher him away from the table once he had finished his dinner. "I'll probably be gone in a short while anyhow, and I'd prefer you to be in bed before then."

Tryggr was about to protest (he was _not_ tired!) when a slight movement caught his eye. He almost gasped with relief when Hiccup's familiar frame poked through the opening of their door, but managed to stop himself just in time. The second Tryggr had spotted him, Hiccup had caught his eye at the exact same time – his eyes flickered worriedly between his father and his brother before he motioned with a finger to his lips for the young boy to stay very quiet about his presence.

It was too late. Stoick clearly must have heard Hiccup trying to tiptoe his way to the stairs, for in a few short seconds, without turning away from Tryggr, he called out, "Hiccup."

Hiccup froze, halfway through crawling up the stairs. "Uh... Dad! I, er, have to talk to you, Dad…"

"I need to speak with you too, son," said Stoick, turning to face his eldest child. "Tryggr. Go to bed."

Tryggr pouted. "But-"

"Tryggr. Bed."

"Daddy-"

"Now!" Stock boomed as his patience ran thin, striking the small child with fear. In a heartbeat, he was already rushing up the stairs, refusing to look back.

"You don't have to shout at him, you know?" He heard Hiccup speak up, though it was muffled from the floor of the loft. Worried and upset, he ducked under the covers of his bed.

"I'm the parent here, Hiccup. Not you."

"Oh yeah, I forgot you were the _expert_."

"What?"

"Nothing."

* * *

><p>Hiccup tired not to scowl up at his father, but it was a big struggle. His father appeared to be having a struggle to remove his own scowl, but that did not bother him. It was when their dad yelled at Tryggr when Hiccup would gladly accept any form of cold shoulder on his behalf. Their relationship was the fractured one. Tryggr did not deserve any of it. It had been Hiccup's fault after all that their mother had been snatched by dragons, Not Tryggr's; and Hiccup would be damned before he let his little brother suffer the consequences.<p>

He tried not to scoff. '_He was not the parent'_. He may as well have been. After all, it had not been Stoick the Vast who was forced to stumble around the village, clutching his starving newborn brother, searching desperately for a nurse because his father was too depressed and furious to take notice of his two, living children. It had not been Stoick who tried to teach the little boy how to walk. It had not been Stoick who witnessed his first words. It was not Stoick who made sure every night the youngster was tucked in and told him a bed time story. Sure, he made sure they were stocked with food, made sure they both had safe retreats during dragon raids, and was overly busy with chiefing duties; but to Hiccup it was hardly any excuse.

_Just admit that you're avoiding me_, Hiccup thought sourly, _get it over and done with and leave Tryggr out of this. It was not his fault. It was not his fault!_

"So, you needed to speak with me?" he eventually mumbled, breaking the cold stare.

Stoick blinked and broke out of the stare too before giving a heavy sigh. "I've decided that you get your wish. Dragon training. You start in the morning."

Hiccup went blank and felt his jaw drop slightly. Oh. Right. That's why he should have gone first.

"Er, actually, Dad, I was thinking just now, you know, about the whole 'Hiccup not being a dragon killer', and you're right. I'm not. So, I was thinking… do we have enough… bread making Vikings? Ooh! Or what about small home repair-"

"You'll need this," said Stoick, dropping a large axe into Hiccup's outstretched arms, nearly sending the boy toppling over.

"Agh! I don't want to fight dragons!"

Stoick chuckled. "Oh come on, yes you do!"

Bright, desperate, acidic green eyes flashed briefly in Hiccup's memory. "Rephrase: Dad. I. Can't. Kill Dragons!"

"But you will kill dragons!"

A despairing moan and whimper resonated through his mind, and he envisioned lowering the small dagger. "No. I'm really extra sure that I won't!"

"It's time Hiccup."

_Unbelievable_. "Can you not hear me?" he yelled desperately.

"This is serious, son!" Stoick finally yelled back, trying to bring Hiccup to attention. "When you carry this axe-" He briefly lifted the large weapon out of Hiccup's bony arms, "-you carry all of us with you." He placed the blade back in Hiccup's grasp, and rolled his eyes slightly when the boy practically collapsed underneath the weight. "Which means-" He pulled his son back to an upright position, "-you walk like us. You talk like us. You think like us. No more of… this."

Hiccup scowled. "You just gestured to all of me."

"Deal?"

"This conversation is very one sided…"

"Deal?"

Hiccup gave a defeated sigh. "Deal," he mumbled, his voice cracking slightly.

Stoick slumped briefly in relief, giving his son a curt nod to seal the 'agreement' before turning around to fetch his helmet and travel pack. This quickly caught Hiccup's attention and his grasp on the axe handle fumbled once more. "Er, you're going somewhere?"

"We've agreed to search for the Dragon Nest one more time before winter begins," Stoick explained, placing his helmet on. "We shouldn't be more than a few weeks. You and Tryggr should be right until then."

Hiccup's lips curled unfavourably. No. They would not be 'right'. Well, he realised bitterly, Tryggr would not know the difference. He had not been around when their father had preferred to stay home for as much time as possible, singing and dancing with their mother, play fighting with his child, telling stories… no, that was all lost now to the obsession of hunting for the Dragon's Nest. Now the Chief rarely stepped foot inside their hut. Too many memories, Hiccup supposed; but it did nothing to make him feel better.

"You're not going to find her, you know," Hiccup muttered daringly, watching his father retreat to the door. Stoick froze mid step, whirling around to face his eldest child in anger.

"Hiccup…" he warned, his voice a deep, threatening growl.

"All this hunting won't bring Mum back," continued Hiccup, his voice rising in equal anger. "She's gone, Dad! Hunting for the Nest non-stop's not going to change that!"

"Hiccup, I'm warning you-!"

"Maybe next time you can find a better excuse that you're avoiding us other than 'before winter settles'! That's a load of heaping yak-!"

"SILENCE!" Stoick roared, the volume so loud it shook Hiccup to his core. To his stubbornness, the boy did not stagger and held his glare. He was done. He was done playing the role of the good, obedient son who wanted to win back his father's love and attention. He was almost a young man now, tired and through with it all. He had long since accepted their shattered relationship was far beyond repairing; ever since that night five years ago…

Both father and son stood there, glaring at each other furiously for a good long while, challenging their opponent to break apart from the stare. Eventually, Hiccup won out; Stoick shook his head in disbelief and fury, growling under his breath.

"You just keep your head in Dragon Training," he grumbled, turning sharply towards the exit. Within seconds, he was gone, slamming the door behind him as he went.

Hiccup growled with frustration and tried to throw the axe in his arms across the room; of course, it only resulted with him nearly toppling over and stubbing his toe on the axe handle. He made no move to pick it up and stood there instead, fighting back the turmoil of anger and distress that was rampaging through his mind. He had fought with his father before, but it had never reached that severity before…

"Oh gods," he sighed under his breath, rubbing a tired and slightly damp eye. He missed it. He missed it so badly; it was the worst kind of homesick. He missed being able to run up to his dad and give him a big hug, welcoming him home or wishing him a good day at Chiefing. He missed being able to tell him about his day, about his adventures, about all that he learnt, about Gobber's stories, about his drawing. He missed being received by that big, booming, joyful laugh and with a hand ruffling thorough his hair, teasingly asking whether he had grown any taller since the morning.

He missed having Mum around…

"Hiccup…?"

Hiccup gasped in surprise and spun around to face the stairs. Tryggr was standing on the top step nervously with wide eyes, clutching a little toy tightly to his chest.

Hiccup sighed and hoped to the gods that he had stopped crying. "You okay, Tiger?" he said quietly, realising that the argument must have scared him.

Tryggr's lip quivered. "You and Daddy were really loud."

Hiccup began making his way up the stairs, cursing himself with each and every step. "I know, I know, I'm sorry, buddy," he murmured, taking Tryggr by the hand and leading him back to his bed. If he was stronger, he would have carried the little boy; but alas his muscles were about as existent as his friendships with the other teens his age.

He silently cursed himself again as he started tucking Tryggr back into bed, wishing he had not started the argument with his father. It had terrified the child, that much was clear. He knew that he had been in the wrong, but he was just so tired. He wanted everything back to normal.

He smiled warmly, taking more of a notice of the little toy in Tryggr's grasp. "Hey, I haven't seen this little guy for a while," he murmured softly, fiddling with the horns on top of the woollen dragon's head.

"He makes me feel better," said Tryggr, clutching it closer.

Hiccup nodded in understanding. He wished he still had his own dragon toy that their mother had also made; but he had thrown it into the ocean years ago out of silly childhood fears. He had watched his mother make Tryggr's toy when she had still been pregnant, still wondering whether the baby would be a little brother or sister and whether or not they too would be afraid of dragons; he had watched her sow each stitch carefully, humming soft lullabies as she worked…

Gods, he really missed her.

But, he thought bitterly, it was the price he had to pay for his stupidity. It was all his fault…

"So, it's just going to be you and me for a couple of weeks, Tiger," said Hiccup, shifting his gaze away from the toy towards his brother's face.

"Yeah, Daddy told me."

Hiccup smirked. "We get to have a house party every night now until then if we wanted."

Tryggr giggled. "Yeah! We can make a cake and play games!"

"…only if I get to make the banners."

"Hmm, fine. But only if you can tell awesome bed time stories every night until Daddy gets home!"

Hiccup nodded and held out his hand. "We have a deal, little brother."

Still giggling, Tryggr released his hold on his toy dragon and shook Hiccup's hand, sealing the agreement.

"We'll have to start on that tomorrow though," said Hiccup, letting go. "It's a bit late now, we didn't get much sleep last night and I have to be up early tomorrow."

"Forge again?"

Hiccup sighed. "No. Dragon Training."

Tryggr gasped with excitement and sat up in his bed. "Really? You get to go to Dragon Training? That is so cool! Do you get to fight all the dragons? Do you get to kill them? Can I watch? Can I come with you? Please, please, please?"

"Maybe you'll be able to watch a bit later with the other kids," said Hiccup, pushing Tryggr back to lie down again. "It might mean I'll be a bit late home sometimes though; I dunno. We'll see."

Tryggr tilted his head, curious. "Hey! How come you were late tonight? You said you were going to be home as soon as possible!"

Hiccup swallowed nervously, instantly overcome with the vision of a furious Night Fury pinning him to the ground. He shook his head. Nope. No way he was going to tell his little brother, the only Viking on the island who ever had faith in him and looked up to him, that he released a Night Fury because he refused to kill it, and then promptly fainted from sheer terror after it had roared in his ear. No way on Odin's earth.

"Nothing too important for you to worry about," Hiccup eventually answered. "Just some stupid, raw, Viking stuff," he finished lamely, flexing his non-existent muscles, earning an amused laugh from Tryggr. "Now, get some sleep," he said softly, yet sternly, ruffling the boy's hair.

Tryggr yawned and wriggled underneath his fur blanket. "G'night, Hiccup," he mumbled tiredly.

"Good night, Tiger," said Hiccup, moving across to blow out the candles, leaving their loft in darkness before he retreated to his own bed.

He struggled to hold back a tired groan as he removed his vest, belt and boots. Amazing. He had spent nearly half the day unconscious and he was beyond exhausted. He supposed that was just what happened when one had the absolute living daylights scared out of them.

He gave a content sigh as he pulled his blanket across and closed his eyes, preparing to fall into a deep sleep. After all, he needed the energy if he was going to fight dragons tomorrow. Whoopee…

"…Hiccup?"

Hiccup struggled not to groan. "Mmh?"

"What dragons are ya gonna fight tomorrow?"

"I dunno. Go to sleep."

"What do you want it to be?"

_Not a Night Fury_. "It could be a flying troll for all I care. Goodnight."

"Do those exist?"

"Maybe, I dunno. Please, Tryggr."

"Hiccup?"

"_Tryggr_."

"Can we have berries for breakfast tomorrow?"

"Goodnight, Tryggr!"

* * *

><p><em>And I shall end it here until next time. Like I said, I was really worried about this chapter - well, mainly about the confrontation between Hiccup and Stoick as I based it off my friend who similarly was essentially forced to raise his baby sister when his dad fell into depression after his mum passed away (R.I.P. Hannah), but I really hope this wasn't too OOC, please let me know what you think.<em>

_And yeah, a little bit of insight into Hiccup's past with Valka around :) I know it's not much and only leads to more questions, but I promise all will be explained as the story continues!_

_Please review to tell me what you think and favourite if you enjoyed :) It would really mean a lot to me :)_


	3. Fun and Games

_Hey guys! I'm really glad you didn't think my last chapter was too out of character and was done perfectly fine, so thank you again for your input. This next chapter is actually on one half of two; originally I panned for this chapter to end with the whole 'book of Dragons' scene, but soon I was typing away and so many ideas came to mind and this chapter was just becoming ridiculously long I had to stop :P But its a good kind of long :) So I hope you enjoy this chapter :)_

_Answering a bit now:_

_caitycatterpillar: Thank you for the review :) And before you actually reviewed I planned on having this chapter as a bit of an explanation of what little Tryggr does while Hiccup (and by extension, Stoick) is busy and unable to be with him. So hopefully this answers your question._

_erifetim: I'm glad you enjoyed it :) As for the whole skipping over, I thought it was the best thing to do (and I also find it a wee bit annoying and tiring when other fics do this) as I mostly want to focus on what would change with Tryggr in the picture, so I didn't really find it absolutely necessary to put in the parts we know off by heart; and really, if you have no idea what happened... what are you doing reading my fic and why haven't you watched this amazing move yet!? Lol :)_

_Guest (1): Thanks :) As for the Toothless question, you will see and find out later :)_

_Guest age 15: Haha, glad we've got the name business down XD Fun fact, Tryggr's nickname was originally going to be "Tigger" but I thught it was too close a reference to Winnie the Pooh and decided to tone down a 'g' instead - I found it to be more softer too XD_

_Okay, I hope you enjoy this next installment everyone :)_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Three<strong>

It really did seem silly to Tryggr, having watched his big brother struggling to hoist their father's axe over his shoulder.

"Why don't you just get something smaller?" asked Tryggr from atop their dining table, swinging his legs back and forth.

"Because then I'd look ridiculous… well, more ridiculous."

Tryggr frowned, not understanding Hiccup's logic. "But then you'd be able to move around better!"

"Yeah, and I'm sure I'd look really scary to the dragons if I came up to them like this," said Hiccup, dropping the axe and instead grabbing a small dagger tucked within his belt. He clutched the small handle with both hands and pretended to have a pathetic sword fight, causing Tryggr to laugh. Okay. Now he really did look ridiculous.

"You look funny!"

"My point exactly," agreed Hiccup, putting his dagger back and attempted to properly lift the large axe over his shoulder. "Besides, it doesn't really matter what weapon I choose, I can't seem to carry it… or use it against any dragon, really."

"How come?" asked Tryggr, a bit worried. His brother looked worried. He shouldn't be. He was going to be the best dragon fighter; he would figure out a way to win, he was really smart after all. He was going to beat Snotlout for sure.

Hiccup shook his head. "Nothing. I was just being stupid."

"Like always."

"Hey!"

Tryggr squealed and laughed when Hiccup dropped the axe and dashed towards him across the room. He tried to jump off the table, but Hiccup was quicker and already had him in a light headlock and was ruffling his head.

"Take it back!"

"No way!"

"You have ten seconds before I really attack!"

"Stupid! Stupid!"

"Fine, if that's the way you want to play…"

"Wha-? No! Hiccup!" Tryggr burst into a fit of laughter when Hiccup suddenly tipped him, leaving his upper body dangling upside down off the edge of the table. Hiccup had his legs pinned down tightly, preventing him from falling or escaping.

"Are you going to take it back now?"

"No!"

Hiccup sighed dramatically and started to look bored. "Eh, fine by me. I didn't want to go to training anyway."

Tryggr was still giggling, but he could feel all the blood starting to rush to his head now. Besides, he did not want Hiccup to miss out on dragon training. The elder sibling was always telling him how much he wanted to be like the other Vikings and fight off the winged beasts just like their father. He had to go to training, for sure.

"Okay! Okay! I surrender!" he called up.

It was lucky Tryggr could not see a flash of disappointment in Hiccup's eyes. _He really did not want to go…_

"I'm sorry? I couldn't hear you?"

"You're not stupid!"

"I still can't hear you? Could you speak up?"

"You're the smartest and bestest on the island! Let me up!"

"Well, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but fine. Up you come!"

With a couple of tugs, the little boy was sitting back upright on the table, red faced and still giggling.

Hiccup sighed. "I'd better get going. Party doesn't start without me," he muttered with sarcastic joy, moving back across the room to pick up the axe again.

"Can I come, please?"

"You'll have to see whether the other kids are allowed, cause I'm not sure; I don't remember being allowed to see the training… or maybe that was just me not allowed."

"How come?"

Hiccup shrugged, and motioned for Tryggr to follow him out the door. "Dad probably thought I'd mess up somehow, and Mum… well, she just probably didn't like the idea of me watching the violence. She was a bit sensitive like that when it came to dragons."

Tryggr thought about asking more questions; after all, this was the first time in a long while since Hiccup ever talked to him about their mother. Maybe this could be a leeway to an open gate? Unfortunately, Hiccup took a large step forward (and nearly tripped over) and turned to face him. "Okay, I dunno when I'll be done, but I should probably meet up with you by dinner like usual. Okay? Up in the Great Hall?"

Tryggr nodded and went up to give Hiccup a hug. "Okay! You'll kick some dragon butt?"

Hiccup returned the hug. "Uh, yeah, sure…" He did not sound that enthusiastic, but Tryggr thought it was because he was just nervous. He eventually released his little brother from the hug, but kept his hands remained firmly on his shoulders. "Remember to stay in the village, alright?"

Tryggr rolled his eyes. "That was one time and ages ago!"

"Yeah, causing you and the other kids to nearly be ambushed by a flock of terrors and it nearly caused Dad to skin me alive," said Hiccup, ruffling his hair. "Who said I was looking out for you, anyway?"

Tryggr stuck out his tongue playfully. "Fine."

"Alright, I'll see you later, Tiger," said Hiccup, finally making his way down the hill towards the Kill Ring.

"You know, Daddy was only mad 'cause you tried to use your sword shooter to stop the Terrors and nearly killed three Vikings!" the little boy called out cheekily.

"Thank you for that!" Hiccup called over his shoulder, his voice thick with sarcasm.

Tryggr stood there for a while, realising that this could be a very good day… or few weeks for him. After all, Hiccup was going to be busy training, and his father was gone searching for the Dragons Nest, meaning that he did not have either family member available to check up on him all the time during the day, pestering him not to get into too much trouble or get his clothes all muddy. He was free… well, as as free as a five year old could get on the island.

Humming happily, he made his way down the hill leading towards the sheep pens where most of the children of the village hung out during the day. He dodged out of the way from the adults easily , and jumped over small, stray parts of fallen timber that had not yet been cleaned up from the raid. He imagined himself being a great, unstoppable warrior – dodging all the obstacles in his way, like nothing could stop him from reaching his destination. He picked up a fallen stick and pretended to use it as a sword, fighting off imaginary dragons as he ran towards the fields; mumbling excitedly under his breath as he went. He was way too excited and caught up with the idea of his big brother in dragon training. He could not wait until it was his turn. He would be the best dragon killer in all of Berk- no, in all the archipelago! His family would be so proud!

At last, Tryggr caught sight of the other kids, already playing Dragons and Vikings. He huffed, annoyed. He was late.

Not waiting, he excitedly charged into the small gathering, brandishing his 'sword'. "Hi-yah!" he yelled out, swiping at Steinn who he quickly determined to be a dragon.

The other boy yelped and fell back in surprise, causing the other kids to laugh.

"He's down! Dragon down!" A little girl, Sygny cried out, pretending to swoop down like a dragon to avenge her friend.

"Attack!" Tryggr commanded, quickly taking his position as leader. Usually the kids never argued against that; being the son of the Chief it was only natural.

"No! We need to get the giant!" Another girl, Adelaide, Tryggr's other cousin, yelled while pointing towards the eldest child of the group, Crab. Tryggr scowled, and instead pushed on fighting Sygny. He was the leader. He made the decisions.

"Die! Mighty beast!" Tryggr gave a war cry, pretending to cut off Sygny's 'wings'.

"No!" the little girl cried out dramatically, falling to the ground. "Curse you Berk! Avenge me!"

"It's too late, dragons!" Olaf, the youngest boy of the group, yelled in victory, holding his stick in the air as Adelaide pushed down Crab.

"We won! The Vikings won!" Adelaide called out, jumping in her spot victoriously.

"Yeah! Stupid dragons will never win!" said Tryggr, pretending to get into a swordfight with Olaf.

"We'll be the best warriors on the island!" agreed Steinn, despite being on the losing team. "Just wait until we get to go to training like the big kids!"

"My brother's there now!" Adelaide bragged. "He's going to win the honour of killing the dragon!"

"Nuh-uh!" Tryggr called out defiantly, shaking his head. "My brother's gonna kick your brother's butt!" He felt really proud, knowing that Hiccup was a part of the big kid group, about to take down all the dragons.

"Your brother? The loser?" Adelaide laughed, as did a couple of the other kids.

"He's not a loser! He's really smart and really fast! He could actually pick up Daddy's axe this morning! He's really strong too!"

"Didn't he break the big torch during the raid?" asked Crab.

"No stupid, that was the dragon!" said Sygny.

"Which was trying to kill Tryggr's brother," said Olaf.

"Apparently he said he killed a Night Fury!" Steinn pointed out excitedly. "Did he really, Tryggr? Did he?"

Tryggr was actually surprised by that. "No. He would have told me if he did! He tells me everything!"

"Aw, that would have been cool," Steinn sighed.

"Which he's not," Adelaide said, sticking out her tongue at Tryggr. "My brother's better."

"No way!" said Tryggr, pointing his stick towards his cousin challengingly.

Adelaide began to fight back with her own make shift sword. "Yeah way!"

"Snotlout's stupid!"

"Hiccup's weird!"

"Stupid!"

"Weird!"

The fight continued amongst the children for the majority of the day, trading spots to get into a swordfight with each other until they made a small tournament out of it. Soon, all thoughts of dragon training were out of their minds and were instead heavily focused upon their own game of heroes and swordfights. Of course, naturally, they were not very good; but it was a form of playtime encouraged by the older Vikings, to toughen them up and prepare them for the real world.

Too many times that afternoon a child was prodded too harshly, or given a particularly nasty scratch, or even pushed down, but they did their best not to cry in pain and tried to channel it to anger to act upon revenge. It was often a phrase Stoick told Tryggr and Hiccup; and the young boy would always keep it at the front of his mind.

"A Chief feels no pain, son."

Usually, it was brought upon by times when the youngest had hurt himself and struggle not to cry – Hiccup would try to make him feel better by quickly tending to whatever wounds he had and making up a story on the spot to keep him distracted, until Stoick would intervene to remind the both of them what they should grow up to be. Brave. Strong. Completely tolerant to pain. A warrior.

Despite laughing whenever Hiccup would mimic their father behind his back, Tryggr took the words to heart. It would make his father proud, to become a strong warrior; undefeatable. The best dragon killer, and right-hand to his brother when the time comes for him to be Chief.

Hiccup always laughed at this whenever Tryggr boasted about his own future skill. "Tiger, if anything, you'll be the Chief when you grow up," he had told his little brother once.

Tryggr remembered having looked up at his elder sibling, confused. "But you're the oldest! So that'll mean you'll be Chief when you get bigger and older, right?"

"Trust me, you'll grow up to be a lot bigger than me."

"No way!"

"Hey, I'm the talking fishbone here! You know, the one who's always stuck in the forge making weapons instead of wielding them. At least you can go up against the other kids in a swordfight."

"Didn't you ever have swordfights with kids when you were little?"

Hiccup would only flex his arms. "Nah. They wouldn't have been able to overcome all this raw vikingness!"

Young Tryggr had completely missed the tone of sad sarcasm and just dropped the topic, instead he had begun asking whether or not they could go exploring for trolls in the woods. Sometimes he just did not understand Hiccup; especially when it came to comparing their physical differences. Tryggr only understood certain things. He was little, Hiccup was bigger. He was short, Hiccup was taller. He was clumsy and stubby, Hiccup, well, he was even more clumsy but he was also quicker. He was younger, Hiccup was older and smarter. He just could not understand why Hiccup did not seem to appreciate all of those good things. He was an awesome brother; he had the best stories, he could draw really well, he was funny, he always looked after him when Daddy was not around.

Tryggr's childhood innocence just could not place what was wrong with the picture. He hoped that maybe Dragon Training would make Hiccup happier.

Wait a moment…

Dragon Training!

"Oh no!" Tryggr exclaimed, catching sight of the slowly setting sun. "We missed it!"

"Missed what?" asked Olaf, lowering his stick worriedly.

"I was gonna watch the Dragon Training, but I forgot!" Truggr cried out, pouting in annoyance. How could he have been so silly?

"We can watch?" asked Sygny, astonished.

"Cool! We should go tomorrow!" said Steinn.

"Yeah!" Adelaide and Crab agreed with enthusiasm. Soon all children were babbling with excitement about the prospect of watching the older children fight against the dragons.

Tryggr eyed the sunset wairily. "I need to go to the Great Hall," he excused himself. "I told Hiccup I was gonna be there waiting for him."

"We should hurry," said Crab, holding out his hands. "I felt some rain!"

All children pouted at the prospect, realising that very soon, one way or another they were going to be forced to go back inside. Nonetheless, they ran back to the safety of the village, squealing and leaping all the way as they became caught up in a game of tag along the way. Crab had been right; in a mere few minutes, Berk was struck suddenly with heavy rain – most likely leading to the prospect of minor floods and damage, and some very sick kids.

By the time Tryggr reached the Hall, having waved the others goodbye as they bolted to their own homes, he was drenched to the bone from the rain. He did not mind though; his boots made funny sounds and left patterns wherever he walked now.

He soon made a game out of it as he walked into the Great Hall, bouncing and hopping around as he searched for Hiccup; now there was a long trail of slowly fading footprints leading up from the doors towards the centre, creating a unique pattern in Tryggr's mind. He frowned in confusion upon finding the table of the traiing recruits being lectured by Gobber. There was his older cousin Snotlout; the loud and crazy twins, the really big and kind of funny Fishlegs, the pretty girl that Hiccup had a huge crush on…

But said love-struck boy was nowhere in sight.

Tryggr quickly shuffled over to Gobber, tugging on the end of his shirt.

"Now, you lot need ta fix yer mistakes, and- oh, 'ello there, laddie," said Gobber, slightly startled by the child's appearance.

"Where's Hiccup?" Tryggr asked, completely forgetting his manners – he was briefly grateful neither his brother nor father were here to berate him about it. But he was worried and confused; Hiccup had promised he would be there. Was this a repeat of last night?

"Aw, it's the squirt again," Ruffnut whispered, earning a smack in the head from Tuffnut and an eye roll from Astrid.

Gobber frowned. "Ah dunno, laddie. He ran off once trainin' was over. Ah'm sure he'll be here soon."

"Probably ran off to go cry," Snotlout murmured (rather loudly) under his breath.

Tuffnut cackled. "Yeah, did you see that Gronkle? It was all like, 'Rawr!' And then he was all like, 'Aaaagh! Please don't hurt me!' And then the dragon was all 'Boom!' The Hiccup was like 'Aaaaaagh!' Screaming like a little girl!"

The two boys high fived, laughing.

Fishlegs frowned. "He was actually really quiet."

Astrid huffed. "I doubt you two would have been better anyway."

"Well, we weren't the ones cornered by a fat, slow dragon in the first place, now were we, babe?" retorted Snotlout.

"He did last the second longest," Fishlegs reasoned, uncomfortable with all the teasing being passed around the table about their peer.

Tryggr frowned at the group of teenagers, trying to figure out exactly what happened in the Kill Ring. It sounded like Hiccup had done okay, but not well at the same time. It was too confusing, watching the group toss comments back and forth about him missing brother's progress; so he released his hold on Gobber's tunic and promptly sat on the ground, now distracted by the uncomfortable feeling of his wet boots. Perhaps it was not such a fun idea to get them all wet in the first place…

"Now, back to fixin' yer mistakes…"

* * *

><p>Perfect. Just perfect. Of course it had to start raining just as he started to head back to the village. Of course!<p>

Hiccup scowled unhappily as he tried to avoid the large puddles that were littered throughout the pathway towards the Great Hall, trying not to get himself more wet than he already was. He had to move quickly, knowing his luck he would probably get sick the next morning if he did not find warmth soon.

Still distracted by thoughts about the Night Fury stuck in the Cove, he nearly tripped over himself as he sunk unexpectedly in a puddle. He scoffed at his own clumsiness and tried to gain his footing back. Hopefully it would be better in the Great Hall.

He hesitated briefly upon hearing Gobber's voice from within, realising that the other teens were there too. He curled his lips nervously and braced himself for the worst, finally pushing the door open.

"Alright. Where did Astrid go wrong in the Ring today?"

"I mistimed my summersault dive. It was sloppy. It threw off my reverse tumble."

As he trudged along to the table, Hiccup nearly gaped in surprise. What in Odin's name was she talking about? She had done great in the Ring! …well, better than him by far.

"Yeah, we noticed," Ruffnut scoffed, her voice thick and heavy with sarcasm.

"No, no! You were great! That was so Astrid!" Snotlout insisted, earning an eye roll from the girl he was trying to woo over. Hiccup almost rolled his eyes in synch. It was so pathetic.

"She's right! You have to be tough on yerselves," said Gobber, indicating to them all and finally catching Hiccup's eye. The boy leaned over to grab the plate of chicken that had been left for him, and he rolled his eyes and visibly slumped when Snotlout moved across the bench quickly to make sure he had no place to sit. He wanted to scoff. As if he would sit anywhere next to limpets for brains… or any of them for that manner. He knew he had no place amongst them. Besides, he had to find Tryggr; that was if the kid had remembered to come here as soon as the day ended like he was told to.

"Where did Hiccup go wrong?" Gobber asked the other teens. It took nearly all ofHiccup's inner strength not to glare and dead-pa at his mentor. _Look at what you've started, you meat-head!_

"Uh, he showed up?" said Ruffnut, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. _At least it's something you and me both can agree on…_

"He didn't get eaten!" said Tuffnut, just as Hiccup quickly made to grab a mug of water before Snotlout would intercept. _Nah, too busy trying not to get my head blown off_, he thought despairingly, trying to ignore the pang of hurt as Fishlegs inconspicuously moved his arm down to the seat next to him to keep Hiccup from sitting at the table.

"He's never where he should be," said Astrid rather sternly, pointing out his actual mistake. Briefly, he caught her eye. _Ouch, thank you for that…_

"Thank you, Astrid!" said Gobber.

However, upon locking gazes with her, Astrid held the stare and soon indicated to the ground next to her where Gobber had previously been standing. Hiccup was flabbergasted; was she seriously trying to make him eat on the floor?

Then he caught sight of the drenched little boy playing with his equally soggy boot.

"Tryggr!" he cried out, quickly depositing his meal on the table across from the teens before skidding down to his little brother. "What the-?"

"It's all wet," said Tryggr, shaking the water out from his left boot.

"Oh gods, you're soaked to the bone!" Hiccup tried to scold, removing the boy's other boot, but his voice was filled with worry. The last thing he needed was a sick little boy to take care of while he was stuck in training and while their father was away. "What were you doing?"

"It started raining when we were coming back to the village, and the I was playing in the puddles," said Tryggr, looking rather pleased with himself. "They were huge! You shoulda seen 'em!"

"He was probably too busy trying not to drown in them," said Snotlout, earning laughter from the twins.

Hiccup briefly scowled up at them. It was not funny. No possible sickness was worth joking about on Berk. Instead of retorting, he only took Tryggr's hand and pulled him up. "Come on, we'll go the to the fire," he said sternly, trying to make his brother realise that being drenched was not a fun matter.

Leaving his meal and Gobber's tutoring forgotten, the two boys walked past the other tables and towards the centre of the hall where a large fire pit had been lit up to warm and light up the entire hall. By the time they reached it, Tryggr seemed to have realised Hiccup was not at all happy with their predicament. "I'm sorry," he mumbled softly, avoiding eye contact.

Hiccup made sure that Tryggr's little hands were placed close enough to warm themselves by the blaze, but not enough to burn. "You know you shouldn't have been playing in the puddles! That's how you get sick; and who's going to have to look after you and make sure you don't get any worse."

"…you," the little boy mumbled, feeling rather sorry for himself.

"Exactly, and I don't want to catch whatever you've got," said Hiccup, trying to lighten up the mood by poking Tryggr's arm payfully.

Tryggr cracked a small smile. "But you're wet too!"

"I can look after myself, there's a difference."

"I can too!"

"Sure you can, Tiger," drawled Hiccup, smirking as he ruffled Tryggr's hair. He nearly erupted into laughter as it frizzed up comically from the dampness of his slowly drying hair. "Have you had any dinner yet?"

Tryggr shook his head no.

"Stay there, I'll get you something," said Hiccup, briefly making sure Tryggr was still a safe but reasonable distance from the warm fire before making his way back to the table where he had left his plate of chicken. He was not that hungry in the first place; his brother would appreciate and benefit from the meal a lot more.

He was surprised upon finding that almost everyone had left, leaving only Astrid and a large book he was sure had not been there before. He tried to be quiet and leave her in peace as he picked up Tryggr's discarded boots and then moved across to collect his plate of chicken. Unfornately, luck was definetly not on his side that night. Astrid had caught his eye again. He struggled not to blush.

She looked over her shoulder, towards where the little boy was. "Is he okay?" she asked.

_Oh gods, she was talking to him. She was actually talking to him!_

"I-uh, yeah. Yeah, he is," he stumbled over his words. He inwardly scowled at himself. _Well played, Hiccup, well played_. "Just, you know, a little wet. I just need to get him dry and wait for the rain to, you know, ease up a bit."

Astrid frowned. "Wouldn't it be better to get him back now?"

"I, well, I would but as you can see-" he indicated to himself rather pathetically, "-I don't exactly have anything to cover him up with, and I don't want to risk him getting more sick. So, uh… yeah."

He watched as Astrid glanced towards the doors. "Wait here, I've got an idea," she said, getting up from the table and jogging out of the Hall at a swift pace.

Hiccup was stumped. What was she doing?

Occasionally glancing back towards the entrance, Hiccup made his way back to Tryggr who was now entertaining himself by flapping his hands to make the fire in the pit swirl around. He grabbed the little boy's hand. "Come on, eat up," he said, placing the plate of chicken in Tryggr's hands.

Eagerly, the boy began to scoff down the chicken like there was no tomorrow. Hiccup really could not understand where the boy got such an appetite. Definitely from their father, he realised. Hiccup was more like their mother; they both had the same bird bone structure and small stomachs. Besides, Hiccup could not see the appeal of chicken anyway – too dry for his liking. He preferred fish.

"Wheresh your dinna?" asked Tryggr through a mouthful of chicken.

"Close your mouth and swallow," said Hiccup in a lightly scolding manner.

Tryggr frowned, but obeyed. "Where's your dinner?" he asked a lot more clearly.

"I'm not really that hungry," said Hiccup. "Besides, you need it a lot more than I do, little Viking."

"I'm not little!"

"Yeah. And I'm a foot taller."

"I'll be taller than you one day!"

Hiccup only smiled. "I'm sure you will be." That was an absolute guarantee. Hiccup was extremely short for his age, and Tryggr was actually one of the tallest of his own age group. The boy definitely took after their mountain of a father. He got nervous shivers just thinking about what was going to happen once the child's muscle mass kicked in.

There was a light padding of feet, and both Haddock boys turned to face their owner. Hiccup's eyes widened upon finding that Astrid had come back; holding a shield in one hand and clutching a woollen blanket under her other arm.

"This should help," she said, shrugging up both items.

Hiccup nodded, still surprised that Astrid was willing to help him. It would actually really help. If he could cover Tryggr with the blanket and hold the shield over his head, there was no way the boy was going to be rained on.

"Great!" he approved, reaching up to take the two items. He groaned and nearly dropped the heavy shield, causing him to blush, Astrid to raise a brow and Tryggr to giggle. _Way to go, smooth._ "Okay, buddy, finish up and we can go home."

In a minute, the plate was polished clean and soon Hiccup was able to begin wrapping his brother up in a tight, warm cocoon that was sure to protect him from the onslaught of rain. Tryggr crinkled his nose. "This is itchy!"

"It's warm."

"It's tight."

"It's protective."

"Hiccup!" Tryggr whined, trying to push his way out of the blankets. Hiccup only pinned the boy's sides.

"Enough, or no story tonight," he said sternly, holding the boy's gaze.

Tryggr ceased his complaining immediately.

Astrid gave a cough, startling the two boys and reminding them that they were not alone. "So, what should I take?"

Hiccup looked up at her, confused. "Wha-?"

"Well, no offence, but I don't think you can carry both your brother and the shield," said Astrid, eyeing his gangly arms. "So, which one should I take?"

Hiccup thought he was surely on his way to Valhalla. Astrid was still talking to him, and was prepared to help him, she was going to go over to his house… _Oh Odin, help him._

"You should probably take him," he said, making sure Tryggr was still wrapped up in his blanket. "I haven't been able to carry him since he was three."

"You gave me a piggy back ride last week," said Tryggr, grinning at the memory.

"Yeah, for like thirty seconds."

Astrid gave a small smile at the banter. "Okay, you cover us with the shield. Oh, and grab the book too. I don't think Gobber will be too happy if he finds out someone left it behind."

* * *

><p><em>And I shall leave it here until next time, hopefully it won't be too long.<em>

_So I've had a few OC children in this chapter, but they won't play that major a role in this story. We'll, the majority are OC, Adelaide is actually a real character in the httyd books and she's actually Snotlout's little sister if you didn't know, so I thought it'd be fun to put her in. The way I imagine it, Hiccup is the runt of the village (its true :C ), and he would not have been so accepted amongst his peers, even in childhood because of his weaknesses, but I don't imagine that Tryggr would have been a runt too - rather, I picture him taking a lot after Stoick just the way Hiccup takes after Valka. Tryggr would be a leader amognst his peers, being the son of a chief, and he would have been able to play a part in these rough and tumble sort of games; so I thought it was important to show that our little one here has a much different lifestyle to his big brother._

_I realise he might seem to admire Hiccup a bit too much, but I can't imagine writing him any different. He loves Hiccup. His brother is the one who always looks after him and makes him the most happy - so I don't think it'd be too hard to imagine why he looks up to him so much, as well as his father. He wants to be just like those who are raising him, like most young children. I find it only natural._

_I could talk more, especially on Astrid's role behalf, but I think I'll save that for the next chapter._

_Thank you for reading. Please review and favourite if you enjoyed / want to give me feedback. It would mean the world to me :)_


	4. Bedtime Fun

_Hi guys and gals! So happy to see you really enjoyed my last chapter, especially with Astrid's involvement; so I hope you like this chapter just as much, filled with both brotherly fluff and a bit of hiccstrid fluff - I hope I've done it to your approving standards :)_

_Anyway, just to answer a few things before I continue:_

_xXTheDevilandTheDragonXx: Aw, don't put yourself down! I read your fic and enjoyed it, just keep up the hard work :)_

_Pikachudragon: Agh! No! Don't faint! I need you awake and reading :D Lol!_

_HamPickleSandwich: So happy you love Tryggr and just 'Big Brother' in general :D It makes my week (and that goes for everyone else too!)! And I hope this chapter sort of clear up what I'm aiming for in terms of their initial relationship; but I wanna talk about it at the end of the chapter._

_TO EVERYONE: I've noticed that in every chapter I have people asking/requesting that Tryggr and Toothless meet up; please, I know you're eager for this (believe me, I am too!) but it's not going to happen immediately! I've got it all planned out and know exactly when and where I want this happening. I haven't forgotten! I'm just developing! So no need to keep reminding and requesting, because it's all under control :)_

_Now that that's done, I hope you enjoy this new chapter :)_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Four<strong>

Tryggr held firm to his pout as Astrid carried him out of the hall, leaving Hiccup to follow and hold aloft a shield with one arms and clutching a large book with the other. He really did not like being restricted, let alone in such an itching, irritating blanket; but for the sake of keeping his brother happy, he did not struggle anymore and allowed the teenage girl to carry him back to his home. He was just a little bit grateful they no longer had to be in the rain – he was beginning to get rather cold.

They soon made it down to the Chief's hut, and Astrid softly nudged the door open with her foot, allowing them all to enter. He giggled when Hiccup immediately dropped the book and shield, groaning and stretching his arms. His brother was so silly.

Astrid lowered him to the floor. "You okay?" she asked Hiccup, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, the shoulders should pop back into place in no time," Hiccup grumbled, rolling his aching bones. Astrid sighed and rolled her eyes.

"You should probably think about working out more," she said, "otherwise there's no way you'll hold up in the Ring."

"Yeah, thanks for that advice, I – hey, where do you think you're going?"

Tryggr groaned as Hiccup jumped forward to grab his arm before he could make his escape back up to the loft. "Hiccup!" He whined, trying to break free.

"I need to get you dry, stay down here," Hiccup ordered, tugging Tryggr towards the fire pit and forcing him to sit down. The little boy continued to pout miserably as he watched his elder sibling try to start a fire, clapping two large stones together.

"Need help?" asked Astrid, hanging back by the table, unsure.

"Nah, I got it," said Hiccup, just as a single spark managed to light up a twig in the pit. Soon the warm blaze began to spread. Hiccup glanced up. "Sorry, do you mind just keeping an eye on him? I need to get some blankets."

Astrid shrugged. "Sure."

Hiccup got up from his knelt position and stumbled up the stairs; Tryggr could see his clear struggle not to rush up them on all four limbs like he usually did. Tryggr did not know why he did not do it anyway. Was it because Astrid was there?

At last, when the last of his brother's gangly figure disappeared up to the loft, Tryggr turned in his spot to face the girl, holding firmly to his pout. "Aren't you gonna go?" he asked hopefully, wanting to get away.

Astrid frowned. "Nice try, kid. Stay by the fire, otherwise we'll both be in trouble."

Drats. There went that idea.

Curiously, he continued to stare at Astrid, sizing her up. He never saw much of the village teens, unless he happened to be on the sidelines whilst Hiccup was picked on. Tryggr really did not know much about the blonde beauty that had caught his brother's eye; only that the duo had apparently once been friends, she was rather good at fighting and that Hiccup thought she was (quote) the most amazing girl on Berk.

He tilted his head. "Are you in Dragon Training too?"

Astrid gave a surprised blink. "Uh, yeah. I am."

"What dragon were you fighting?"

"A Gronkle; you know, the big, ugly ones."

"Are you good at fighting the dragons?"

"I'd like to think so, maybe with some improvement I could do better I suppose."

"What about Hiccup? Is he any good?"

Astrid suddenly avoided eye contact briefly. "I... well, he could do with some improvement... and a bit of extra-"

"Do you like him? Cause he likes you a lot!"

Year later, Tryggr would look back to this very moment and he would still be able to swear to Odin that he had never witnessed his brother run so fast nor leap so far down the stairs in his entire life; let alone with a face so red. Before Tryggr could continue his sentence, Hiccup had already leapt upon him and grabbed him in a headlock, sealing a hand tightly over the little boy's mouth.

"Ha ha ha ha! Isn't he just adorable?" he half stammered, half growled, giving Tryggr a rough noogie. Tryggr yelped and whined in protest as he attempted to get away from the assault, completely unaware of what he had done wrong. Hiccup stopped the noogie, but still kept a hand clamped over his mouth. "Brothers, huh?" he tried to laugh off, even though his face could have rivalled the colour of Tryggr's hair.

Astrid only raised a stern brow, although a small, amused smile twitching at the corner of her mouth betrayed her demeanour. "Yeah, what are you going to do?" she agreed with a shrug as if nothing happened.

Hiccup was still laughing nervously. "Okay, I'm just gonna... yeah, take him upstairs and, yeah. You can stay if- or go! Whichever you want. There's some yak milk in the storage if you want any, or maybe some-"

"Hiccup."

"Yep. Going!" He yelped, pulling Tryggr up to his feet and started to lead him up to their loft.

* * *

><p>Tryggr grumbled and pouted all the way, tired, wet, cold and cranky. Hiccup sighed heavily when he saw the way the child rubbed his eyes grumpily. This was going to be a fun night.<p>

"Alright, Tiger, let's get you out of those wet things," Hiccup began softly, trying to sooth the young boy. Tryggr was not having any of it.

He tried to growl angrily when Hiccup began removing his tunic. He could do it himself! It was just unfortunate that Hiccup was more stubborn that he was and had him pinned rather tightly.

"Stop!"

"You're being ridiculous. Come on, we'll get you into something dry."

"Let me go!"

"Tryggr..."

"I wanna go!"

"Tryggr, I'm warning you!"

"No!"

"Tryg- Hey! Get back!"

Hiccup could not pick a more embarrassing night in his entire life. Main problem: he had Astrid freaking Hofferson in his house. Then his little brother just had to blurt out how much he fancied her, then having the same little brother racing downstairs to get away from him to the very same room where same Astrid Hofferson was waiting; bare as the day he was born.

This was not his night at all.

"Agh! No, come on! Get back here!"

"No!"

"Tryggr, I mean it!" he shouted, leaping over the table Tryggr had just darted under.

"No!"

"Tryggr Ferocious Haddock! Stop right there!"

"No!"

Hiccup was close to dying with both relief and embarrassment when Astrid had finally stopped smirking with pure amusement and turned away from a pot she had been tending to over the fire (which Hiccup briefly noticed with curiosity) to grab the naked boy before he ran too close to the flames. She stood and turned back around, holding him out to Hiccup.

"I believe this is yours?"

This was definitely the worst night of his life.

"Thank you for finding him," he grumbled, struggling to grab Tryggr and hold him upright. "I'll make sure he's tied up more properly next time."

There was no way it could have gotten any worse.

He soon learned it could. Tryggr was still in a tired and cranky mood, leaving it impossible for Hiccup to trust him enough to take him by the hand and lead him back upstairs. He had to carry the boy; leading him to look like a complete and utter weakling as he struggled to hoist his little brother back up to the loft.

This night was Hiccup's absolute nightmare. Pun intended.

"Put me down!" Tryggr grumbled when Hiccup managed to finally reach the top stair, after having nearly tripped over it.

"Are you going to behave?" Hiccup responded, raising a brow. He silently began to pray to Odin in his head that Tryggr would succumb and do as he was told. Even more silently, he began to wonder whether he himself had been this difficult as a child and became overcome with a sudden strong urge to apologise to his father for everything.

Tryggr pouted, but stayed perfectly still, allowing his older brother to finally put on his long (and dry) bedtime tunic. Hiccup released a heavy sigh of relief.

"There, done," he murmured, making sure the neck ties were secured in place and that the shoulders were not slipping off. Tryggr gave a sniffle, and for once Hiccup prayed it was only because he was just upset and not coming down with anything.

Softly, he took his little brother's hand and led him over to his bed to tuck him in. "Alright, just settle down now, and I'll bring you something to drink and then we can have a story. Okay?"

Tryggr seemed to perk up immediately at the prospect and finally smiled. Hiccup was instantly overcome with more relief, now that the difficult part was out of the way.

Quickly, he made his way back down the stairs to get some yak milk and warm it up; that always calmed Tryggr down even on his worst of days, so it was sure to do the trick for tonight. He found that Astrid was still there, now emptying some of her pot of contents into a very small mug. He tilted his head in confusion, still baffled that she was still in his home and still wondering what she had been doing.

She jumped when he appeared next to her and held out the mug. "Is this his mug? I thought it might have been, I found it on the table."

"Uh...what's in there?" he asked, completely ignoring her own question.

"It's my mother's recipe; I made it with yak milk and with a few herbs I found in your cupboard. I hope you don't mind. It's meant to prevent colds."

Amazed, he took the little mug. "I- no, not at all... thank you, Astrid."

Astrid gave a nod of approval and turned back to the pot over the fire, stirring its contents more rapidly to keep it heated. Still in a daze, Hiccup turned back around and began making his way back up to the loft, grabbing the Book of Dragons along the way; he figured it could be a good thing to read to Tryggr. His little brother loved to learn, and he loved reading almost as much as Hiccup did.

IT was just a pity they would no longer share the same eagerness to slay dragons anymore. Hiccup's thoughts immediately drifted back to the broken-tailed Night Fury in the Cove and he glanced down at the book tucked under his arm. He wondered if there was anything useful about the mighty beast in there...

"Alright, Tiger, drink up," he said as he reached Tryggr's bed side, passing over the small mug.

Tryggr wrinkled his nose. "It smells funny!"

"It's got some herbs in there to stop you from getting sick."

"I don't want it!"

"Come on, buddy, Astrid made it just for you. Just be nice and drink it up!"

With way too much sass a five year old should have, Tryggr smirked up at his big brother. "You just wanna make her happy and like you more!"

"Oh shut up and drink. By the way, thank you so much for what you said down there."

"You're welcome," said Tryggr, completely missing the sarcasm. He sipped a little bit of the milk and nearly spat it out. "Yuck!"

"Just a few more, and then we can read some of this."

Tryggr gasped excitedly. "What is it?"

"You'll have to have at least three more mouthfuls, then I'll tell you."

Slowly, with disgust, but eventually, Tryggr managed to down half of the liquid in his mug. Hiccup noticed worriedly that the boy had begun to turn slightly green, so he allowed him to stop drinking. Positive that he had enough, Hiccup finally flipped over the book to reveal it to Tryggr.

The child's eyes brightened. "Book of Dragons!"

"Yeah, good job," Hiccup praised, glad that Tryggr was able to identify all the letters properly. "Maybe you should be reading to me tonight."

Tryggr looked positively thrilled by the idea, all signs of his previous grouchy mood gone in an instant. Hiccup nudged him slightly, making Tryggr scoot across to make room for him on the bed. He laid the book across both their laps and kept an arm around the little boy to keep him up right.

Tryggr opened the leather cover, flipping over to the contents page.

"Dragon cas- classif... classif..."

"Classification."

"Classification! Strike class, fear class, tidal class, boulder class, miss- mista-"

"Mystery Class."

"I knew that!"

"Right, you were just testing me, huh?"

"Yeah!"

Tryggr turned the page over quickly, excited by what he may find.

"Thundadrum-!"

"Thunder."

"Yeah, yeah. Thunderdrum. This re... rec-"

"Reclusive."

"This reclusive dragon inhabits sea caves and dark tidal pools. When startled the Thunderdrum produces a conc...conuv-"

"Concussive."

"Concussive sound that can kill a man at close range... cool! Extremely dangerous. Kill on sight!"

Hiccup bit his lip. _Wonderful_...

"Wow, look how big its mouth is!" Tryggr exclaimed, pointing to the carefully drawn picture on the page.

Hiccup nodded and hummed in agreement. "Yeah, it'd probably swallow you whole," he teased, pushing away a twinge of guilt and curiosity at the statement. _Did dragons ever actually eat Vikings...?_

"And then use you to clean its teeth! Isn't that what Gobber says they'll use you for?"

"Oh shush up and keep reading!"

Giggling, Tryggr flipped through the next page.

"Timba-"

"Timber."

"Timberjack. This gigantic creature has razor sharp wings that can slice through full grown trees. Wouldn't that hurt though?"

"...uh, sorry, what?" Hiccup tore his eyes away from the stand out sentence: "_Extremely dangerous. Kill on sight_."

"You know, if they start flying around, like _woosh_-" Tryggr sat up suddenly away from Hiccup's arm, holding out his own and pretending to soar. "And then suddenly _bam_!-" He pretended to collide with something before collapsing back on Hiccup's arm. "They can't be that strong, can they?"

"You never know. Dragon's can surprise you, kiddo." _He certainly learned that lately..._

Tryggr flipped the page.

"Scauldron. Sprays scalding water at its victims... Wow, look! It can melt skin!"

"Lovely."

Tryggr suddenly grew a scared look. "Isn't Daddy sailing with the other Vikings?"

"Dad will be fine. No Scauldron's are going to get him; they'd be too scared anyway," Hiccup tried to comfort and rid of Tryggr's fears, knowing that it was mostly true. Scauldron attacks were very rare on the seas, unless you so happened to catch them in a net by accident or steal their kills. Seeing as how neither were their father's goals, there was hardly any risk.

Seeing that Tryggr was still slightly distressed, especially upon observing the picture of the dying Vikings on the page, Hiccup gave him a nudge. "Hey, let's have a competition. Who can do the best Scauldron impression?"

Tryggr glanced up eagerly and nearly collapsed backwards with laughter. Hiccup had puffed up his cheeks to such an extent they nearly burst; to further entertain his little brother, he had also crossed his eyes.

"You look silly!"

"Bet you can't beat me!"

Tryggr tried puffing out his cheeks, but the second they were filled with air, Hiccup lightly clapped them, causing all the air to blow out in a similar manner to a raspberry.

Tryggr attempted to scowl, but his giggles were betraying him. "You cheated!"

"We're Vikings, there are no rules!"

"You still cheated!"

"I still won! Now, are you going to keep reading, or do you want me to continue?"

Shrugging, Tryggr passed the book over to his brother's lap and leaned back, content to just listen.

Hiccup flipped the page. "Changewings," he began softly. "Even newly hatched dragons can spray acid. Extr-"

BOOM!

Hiccup jumped and Tryggr gave a small squeal of fright when thunder boomed over their house, rocking the hut with powerful vibrations. Tryggr huddled closer to Hiccup, eyeing the roof nervously.

"Hey, it's okay, thunder can't get us in here."

"What if it's a Thunderdrum?"

"It's okay. Like you said, they'd just use me to clean their teeth and then be on their way. Now, let's take a look at the Gronkle..."

Hiccup continued to read each page of the Book of Dragons, softly reciting each paragraph's details about the 'violent' and 'extremely dangerous' beasts, lulling Tryggr into a very calm state. He read on about Nadders and Zipplebacks, Skrills and Boneknappers, Whispering Deaths and Monstrous Nightmares, Snaptrappers and Terrible Terrors. He read just about every single dragon that existed... well, everything except for the Stormcutters which he very quickly skipped over, ignoring his brother's confused protests and claiming that it was a rather boring dragon as an excuse.

That was the last dragon he ever wanted to learn about.

So Hiccup continued reading, wincing in disbelief each and every time the same sentence appeared on each page.

"_Extremely dangerous, kill on sight..."_

"_Extremely dangerous, kill on sight..."_

"_Extremely dangerous..."_

"_Extremely dangerous..."_

"_Kill on sight..."_

"_Kill on sight..."_

Then it appeared on the page. The most empty one.

Hiccup leaned in closer, suddenly more interested in the book than ever.

"Night Fury... Speed unknown. Size unknown. The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Never engage this dragon. Your only chance: hide and pray it does not find you..."

Hiccup paused in his reading for a moment, suddenly overcome with bewilderment, fear and confusion. The page was empty... he could draw the picture in it. Speed? Okay, still unknown. Size, however, he knew. Never engage this dragon? He had done it twice! Hiding and praying was his only chance? Well, he knew he certainly prayed to Thor and Odin and... well, every God when the dragon had him pinned. Huh, maybe the author was onto something there.

"Pretty spooky, huh, buddy?" he murmured, remembering that he had an audience.

When no reply came, Hiccup glanced down to his left to see the reason for any lack of response and smiled. Tryggr had fallen asleep and was now curled up against Hiccup's side, his breathing low and even with contentment. Slowly, as not to disturb the little boy, Hiccup closed the large book and leaned over to place it on the floor beside him before lightly extracting himself from the child's clutches. Tryggr gave a small moan of protest, but curled up again happily when Hiccup brought up the covers and tucked him in snugly, as though his older brother was still there keeping him warm.

Still smiling, Hiccup rubbed Tryggr's hair soothingly. "Night, Tiger," he murmured as he stood, blowing out the candle.

Surprisingly, he managed to tip toe away from the bed lightly without tripping over anything and made it successfully downstairs without having to use all four limbs. He still could not submit himself to that yet; Astrid was still in his home.

He eyed the girl sitting by the fire pit curiously, wondering what more purpose she had staying here of all places (err, not that he was complaining or anything...).

Awkwardly, he sat beside her and stared at the flickering flames with a little too much focus. However, he was brought out of it when she waved a small mug in front of his face. He blinked and looked up at her in confusion.

"I made some for you too, you were pretty drenched. What were you doing out?"

Hiccup bit his lip nervously and took the mug, worrying about how on earth he was going to answer that.

"I just... felt like a walk."

"A walk? In the rain?"

"I hear it does amazing things to clear out your head."

"...uh huh."

Hiccup shrugged and took a sip, hoping Astrid would buy his lie. He knew it was hardly a good chance; he sucked at lying. Suddenly, the taste of the mug's contents hit him at full force like the Gronkle in the Kill Ring and his eyes bugged and his cheeks bulged, similarly to how he was teasing Tryggr earlier.

Maybe the kid had actually been onto something... It tasted awful! No wonder he had turned green!

Astrid gave a small hum. "You know, I still remember how that burn got there," she said softly, pointing to a spot over on the wall where a piece of wood was slightly charred black. Hiccup glanced over, to busy trying to decipher what in Thor's name he had drunk to rack through his memories.

"Mmh hmm," he hummed through closed lips with another shrug, asking her to keep going. Hopefully long enough for him to swallow the vile drink without losing his dignity.

"What were we? Five? Six? Yeah, six. When your mum tried to teach us how to bake bread."

"Mmh," he murmured, still not focusing properly. _Okay, here we go. Three, two, one... oh gods!_

Astrid smirked. "She wasn't exactly that great a teacher, huh?"

Hiccup made no reply. He was trying desperately not to vomit. He had to hand it to Tryggr; the boy had managed to drink half a mug of the stuff. He may have only been five, but he had a far tougher stomach than Hiccup ever had.

"Or cook, for that manner."

Hiccup brought himself back to focus, suddenly recalling the long lost memory. "You were just jealous my bread was better than yours."

Astrid gave a genuine smile of humour. "It was better than both of ours."

Oh yes, Hiccup could only recall the memory all too well. When his father had gone on a (back then) very rare search for the Dragon's Nest and had taken along some of the best warriors on the island, including Astrid's parents – leaving the young girl under the care of the Chief's wife since she had no one else after the death of her uncle. Those had been some of the best and most fun days under the Haddock roof, Hiccup recalled, back when he and Astrid had been close childhood friends; without a single care about Viking appearances and traits, only about games and learning about the world around them.

He remembered the charred spot on the wall very well now. He remembered how his mother had suggested they have a day of learning how to bake, filling their heads with many ideas and fantasies about all the pastries they could create and eat. He remembered their brief flour fight. He remembered carefully watching his loaf, getting annoyed when Astrid had tried to drag him away for another game, laughing when his mother panicked when her loaf had burst into flame and soon tossing it out of the pit to put it out, and then being scared when the wall of their home briefly caught fire.

Yes. Those were certainly the days.

"What happened?" he murmured under his breath, wondrous and upset.

"I guess we just grew up."

"Well, everyone except me, clearly," he grumbled, looking down at his skinny little chest and twig like limbs.

Astrid was silent after that, leaving Hiccup to ask the question burning on his tongue. "How come you're still here?"

Astrid downcast her gaze, smiling slightly. "I was listening to you two read."

"Oh."

"I like it. You're different, you know? Around him. You're happier."

Hiccup tried not to scowl. "Is that really a surprise?"

Astrid clearly chose not to answer that. "You're a good brother, Hiccup."

"I'm only doing what I have to."

"And it a great thing," she said, finally catching his eye. "He's lucky to have you."

The silence between them was thick and heavy with unspoken words, but they both just sat there for a long time, staring into the flames and losing themselves to their individual thoughts. Hiccup had no idea where Astrid's mind had travelled to, but his had gone a long way back to the times when they were children and she was an often visitor, back to when his world had been easy, to when they could have said anything they wanted. Then they briefly flickered to the happiest days of his young life, when his brother had been born and his family had been whole, leaving his world open to amazing possibilities...

It was all gone now. Gone to his mother's empty grave. Gone because of his guilt. Gone because of his clear differences to the rest of the tribe...

Gone.

Astrid gave a sign and stood up, collecting the blanket and shield she had brought along. "I'm going home," she announced. "The rain's died down, and I don't want to slack off on training."

"I- ah, of course!"

"You should probably think about doing the same."

"I will."

"And I meant what I said back in the Hall. Remember to focus on where you should be."

Hiccup wanted to frown, but he could not get rid of the smile lightly gracing his lips. "I'll make sure to do that."

"Well... good night."

"Good night, Astrid. Thanks for... well, everything."

"You better be, 'cause I'm not going to be around all the time to bail you two out of bad weather," she scolded, but there was a light glint in her eyes that was not a reflection from the fire. At last, she left the house, closing the door lightly behind her.

Hiccup gave a heavy sigh of disbelief. What a day. First, he nearly gets killed by a Gronkle. Then he manages to find the rare and supposably invisible Night Fury for a second time. Then Astrid, of all Vikings, had visited his home and stayed for a while out of concern. What a day indeed. Quite possibly one of his better ones, if he did say so himself.

Speaking of Astrid's concern...

What in Odin's beard was he going to do with that horrid concoction in his mug and in the pot?

* * *

><p><em>So what do you think? You like?<em>

_I'd like to imagine that if Valka had stayed she would have absolutely loved all the children in the village, mostly because of their untainted innocence of the world and not corrupted by the need to kill dragons - and so she would have been the go-to lady for babysitting. In particular, I think Astrid would have been a favourite (namely due to the laughs she and Stoick would have over the possibility of Hiccup and Astrid becoming a couple)._

_Now Astrid as a character, this fic or not, I'm a firm believer that she has a great respect for Hiccup - even though he does the most foolish of acts to be noticed as a Viking; especially for his mental strengths (I gather this mostly from her actions and responses from the beginning of the movie and from the Thawfest episode about liking his gracious losing). So in 'Big Brother', I think it would have only grown, due to her childhood fun with him and watching him take responsibility and care for his little brother; and she wouldn't be so eager to detach herself away from her childhood friend. Pretty much, she would be a bit more open to him._

_Anyway, that's my two cents of the day._

_So, I hope you liked this chapter :) I'll try to put the next one up soon. Anyway, I need to get going, because I have a sleepy cat on my lap I need to cuddle XD (and she has the hiccups! XD *dying*)_

_Please favourite/review if you enjoyed or/and want to give me feedback. It would really make my day :)_


	5. The Fight

_*creeps out of a corner and dusts off the cobwebs* Soooo... hi? *dodges attacks*_

_I want to apologies for this extremely long wait my fellow readers/writers - you would not believe these past few weeks! First my mother had to have heart surgery (she's great now!) then I had my school formal (awarded best dressed gal, thank you very much :D), then we thought my brother had a tumor and we were all freaking out (false alarm, but he does have abnormally growing ribs) then I got a full time job (in laundry :P) which has been taking up most of my time and I've lost my own computer (curse you school!) so I've been struggling to reach the family one (aka, fighting my brother) and yeah *pants* But I still feel that these are not good enough excuses and quite frankly I'm horrified with myself. I've really wanted to write and upload for so long now - I'm in love with this fic as much as some of you guys are, believe me!_

_This chapter is nearly 6000 words, so I hope this satisfies you :) Although there is a bit of a 'scene repeat' but it was necessary for plot development and I hope you will still enjoy reading. Also, as a bonus and as an apology, I've written a one-shot (but not based on this fic) called "His Hiccup", so I hope you'll give that a go and enjoy it :)_

_Now for some quick replies:_

_3rd Wheel: This was exactly what I've been aiming to do, because as a httyd fanfiction reader myself I know how tiring it can be sometimes to read the scenes we already know off by heart. But sometimes (this chapter as an example) there will be slight repeats, but I have to put it in for necessary plot development but it still has its own little spin :)_

_Scorpion6955: Omg! I love your fanfic! I've read it before and enjoyed it so much! It's actually pretty cool you're reading mine XD_

_NotOfThisWorld4GM: I'm sorry it's been so long! I'm back! I promise that this story will not be abandoned! And you think I'm an awesome writer? Stop! You're making me blush! Thank you so much :)_

_Okay, enough chit chat. Let's get this long awaited chapter on the road!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Five<strong>

_Hiccup curiously looked up at the big, owl like face, tilting his head from side to side to see if it would keep copying him._

"_Wow," he breathed out, awed, excited and nervous. This was utterly amazing. This big dragon was just absolutely incredible. Were they all like this and the other Vikings just did not know it yet? He had to show someone!_

_He put up his hands, in a commanding matter to tell the big, owl-like dragon to stay. "I'll be right back," he whispered, still in shock over his new discovery. He stumbled back to his home, completely in the opposite direction of the forge he had originally been heading for._

"_Mum! Mum!" he called out, bursting through the door. His mother, still resting in the bed close to the fire pit, gave a startled jump._

"_Hiccup? What are you doing? You should be at the forge? Where's your father?" she asked, alarmed that he had not made his way to his designated safe spot. _

_Hiccup ignored all her questions and began to tug on her arm. "Mum! You have to see this! You have to see this!"_

"_Slow down, love! What are you talking about?"_

"_Quick! Quick! It's still close to the woods! Hurry!"_

_His mother made a nervous and unsure glance towards the tiny cradle placed close to her bed. "Hiccup, I-"_

"_Please!"_

"_...oh, all right. What is it, little one...?"_

"No! Don't do it!" Hiccup screamed, bolting up right in his bed, his hand still reaching out to stop the little boy from leading his mother to her doom. His vision was a blur, he could barely see properly. Where was he? What happened? Did it work? Did he stop the child's foolish mistake?

"...Hiccup?"

He gave a surprised gasp at the sound of a child's voice and tried to focus his vision again. No. It was not the nine year old boy. It was instead the newborn babe that had been nestled in the cradle... only now he had grown; five years old and never knowing his mother...

It had been a dream. The same, stupid, guilt-burning dream.

"Hiccup, are you okay?"

Hiccup finally shook himself out of his semi-conscious state and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "Yeah, I'm okay, Tiger. Just a bad dream."

Tryggr tilted his head curiously, reminding the elder sibling of his dream much too painfully. A second later, his little brother held out his dragon toy. "Do you wanna hug him for a bit? He always helps with my bad dreams."

As sorely tempted as he was to cross the room to collect the toy and then curl back up in his own bed and proceed to forget about the world around him, Hiccup could not. With a momentary glance to the crack of the opening on their roof, he noticed that the sun had risen. Soon he would have to get ready for more dragon training. Hurray.

Hiccup still gave Tryggr a small smile. "Nah, I'll be okay. You just keep that little guy all to yourself for your own nightmares."

Tryggr shrugged. "'Kay," he said, bringing the toy closer to his chest again.

"How long have you been up anyway?"

"Dunno, the sun was still rising though."

Hiccup froze. "And how long ago was that?"

Tryggr gave another shrug. Hiccup immediately leapt up from his bed and rushed towards the latch of the roof opening. Once placed up, he had to bite down on his tongue to prevent from swearing in his little brother's presence. It was late morning. Meaning he himself was late.

"C'mon, get dressed," he ordered Tryggr, rushing around to collect his own boots, belt and vest, "I mean it!" he added sharply when the little boy gave a groan of protest. "I'm late. I'm late. I'm so late!"

"But Hiccup-"

"Tryggr, please! Don't be difficult this morning! I need to be down at the ring!"

"But-"

"You'll have breakfast up at the Hall, hopefully some of the other kids will be there too. Just come on! Get your boots. Not those ones! They're still wet. Get your spare set!"

"Hiccup, I think-"

"Come on!"

Barely giving Tryggr enough time to slip on his own little brown vest, Hiccup grabbed his hand and began to tug him down the stairs. "You should have woken me up! You know I need to be up early, even on a normal day!"

Tryggr did not have enough time or energy to reply, and instead allowed his big brother to drag him up to the hall; with protest dying upon his lips. Hiccup could have sighed with relief and thanked Odin that the child's stubborn streak appeared to have been left behind from the previous night. It meant an easy morning, aside from the fact that he was still very late.

"Pushin' it a bit, aren't ye?"

Hiccup spun around, almost crashing into Gobber as he dashed up the stairs. The descending Viking raised a brow and eyed the risen sun.

"Agh, yeah! I know! I'll be down in a second!" Hiccup called down, not giving himself the time to stop and chat. He was surprised that Tryggr was still keeping up with him, although the boy was coughing slightly with what Hiccup guessed to be from lack of air._ He was really, really late...!_

At last, the two boys made it to the Great Hall, where luckily there was still a bit of porridge being served. Upon catching sight of the food, Hiccup nudged Tryygr towards it. "Okay, grab yourself a bowl and stay out of trouble. I need to go down to the ring, now!"

"What about your breakfast?"

"I'll be fine. Besides, I've been meaning to lose weight," he joked, gesturing to his whole self. Tryggr was not amused for once. Hiccup frowned. Was his weight really that bothersome? Even to his little brother? There really was not much Hiccup could do about it, unfortunately. For years he tried to put a bit of meat on his bones, so to speak, and nearly eat himself stupid trying to reach that goal. It always ended the same: with a bucket full of puke. He was just naturally small and skinny; a runt, he concluded with a frown.

Hiccup nudged Tryggr once again. "Just go have some breakfast, okay? Remember, straight back up to here before sundown for dinner; and no playing in the rain this time either! I don't want you getting sick. See you later, Tiger."

* * *

><p>Tryggr was sick.<p>

He could feel it. From the second he woke up with a scratchy throat and a barely working nose. He was well and truly sick. He knew he should have listened to his father and brother whenever they told him not to jump around and play in rain puddles; and now he was paying the price.

He only wished he could have gotten the chance to let Hiccup know during his mad rush. Usually he always had some sort of herbal and honey drink that helped whenever he had colds. Clearly not this morning, however.

With a heavy sigh, and a struggle not to start coughing again, Tryggr slowly made his way to the last of the porridge bowls and grabbed one for himself before making his way over to where he spotted Olaf and Crab finishing the last of their breakfast, while their mothers chatted off to the side about the latest gossip floating around the island.

"Hey guys," he called out, glad that his voice was not croaky. Maybe he was not as sick as he thought he was. He felt lucky upon the realisation. That meant Hiccup would not get grumpy with him later.

The other two boys perked up eagerly when he sat down. "Hey!" Crab replied.

"Did ya hear the thunder last night?" said Olaf, jittering with excitement. "It was so cool! It was all like, bang! Crash! Boom! Our house was shaking! It was so cool!"

"Yeah!" Tryggr cried out with a large grin. He would never admit to either of his friends that he had actually been terrified by the sounds and had resorted to cuddling with his big brother for protection; after all, Vikings were not afraid of anything. Nor did they get sick. Nope. Not at all. He was a Viking, through and through.

"I thought it was a dragon, it was that loud," said Crab.

"Nah, I would have been out fighting it if it was!" Olaf declared, waving his spoon around like it was a sword. His mother turned around and gave him a light scolding when flecks of the lumpy breakfast went flying all over the table.

Tryggr soon gave an excited gasp. "Dragon fighting! We could go and watch the big kids today!"

The two boys grinned eagerly at the suggestion and cried out, "Yeah!"

"Mummy, please? Can we watch the dragon training today?" Olaf asked, turning around to tug at his mother's tunic.

"Yeah! Please, Mama?" Crab asked, biting his lip and bouncing in his seat hopefully. Tryggr sat there very quietly, his eyes alternating between his friends and their mothers and feeling rather awkward. He had no one to ask permission from. Hiccup was down in the training ring. His father was out leading a search for the dragons nest. His own mother was non-existent. He found the realisation of his small family rather daunting.

The two mothers shared a glance and a small smile. "Oh, alright," said Crab's mother, earning a cheer from all three boys. "But only if you're with the other kids, and I'll come down with you. Tryggr, are you allowed to go?"

Tryggr shrugged. "My brother said it was okay." Well, it was not a lie. Hiccup never did say 'no'. He just had to go though; he really wanted to see the action. Unfortunately, he happened to give a very loud sniff to clear his blocked nose.

"Are ye okay, laddie?" asked Olaf's mother, spotting the worrying action. "Yer not sick, are ye?"

Tryggr shrunk down, hoping not to be caught out. "No, ma'm," he said timidly.

The two mothers shared another glance that worried Tryggr; he really, really wanted to watch the dragon training. Much to his relief, they both let the matter pass and allowed the boys to look for their other friends before making their way to the ring. The young Haddock thanked his lucky stars and rushed around the hall, searching for Steinn, Sygny and Adelaide.

It was not too hard. Steinn was finishing breakfast with his father, and Olaf found the two girls balancing mugs in the corner of the hall. All the kids were thrilled by the prospect of watching the training, and their parents gave their approval; believing it to be a good observation of what to expect and prepare for in their own future. Tryggr just burst with excitement and pride at the very thought. He was going to be the best! Just like he was sure his brother would be. They could all continue the Haddock tradition and be able to win the honour of killing their first dragons in front of the entire village. Their father would be so proud of the both of them. Too caught up in his own fantasy, Tryggr wondered briefly whether Gobber might just let him train early with Hiccup. They could take down the dragon together!

"This is going to be so cool!" Sygny cheered, rushing just ahead of the group across the bridge. "We get to watch the dragon fights!"

"Maybe we can start watching the raids too!"

"Don't get ahead of yourself, son," Crab's mother scolded him lightly. "Those are still very dangerous. The Kill Ring is very different to a raid. Unlike a raid, the dragon is enclosed, and Gobber has a very good control over them. You're protected there; unlike out in the open when there is a raid."

"We could still take 'em," insisted Steinn.

"Yeah! We've been practising with our sword fights!" said Adelaide. "We're ready to fight them! We could all probably kill a dragon!"

"We're going to be the best, aren't we?" Tryggr asked them all, earning a cheer from his group of friends.

Crab's mother only laughed. "I'm sure you all will, little ones. In time."

The all finally reached the ring, and after Crab's mother cleared them all through past a concerned Viking watchman, they rushed to the stands just as they heard a faint yelling. "...yer not even tryin'!"

Tryggr gasped in awe, and he was sure he was not the only kid who did so. There was a large, blue and rather colourful Deadly Nadder hopping about the arena – leaping from wooden wall to wooden wall as it chased the shield and weapon wielding teens. Tryggr managed to spot a quick glimpse of his brother darting and stumbling around a corner, holding a glowing, spiked stick for some peculiar reason.

The boy grinned excitedly. This was going to be awesome!

"Today is all about attack! Nadders are quick and light on their feet! Yer job is to quicker and lighter!" Gobber yelled from his position, leaning across the bars of the enclosed Kill Ring. Tryggr tilted his head in confusion. How were his words helping? None of the teenagers seemed to care – they were too busy running for their lives.

The dragon caught sight of one of the teenagers. Fishlegs. Tryggr watched in awe and fear as the Nadder's deadly tail suddenly became erect with hundreds of spikes before flicking it, sending a shower of poisonous shots down at the large boy who just managed to cover himself with his shield just in time with a scream.

"I'm really beginning to question your teaching methods!" Fishlegs yelled. Tryggr could not agree more. Gobber really should have been helping them more; that dragon was really scary.

Gobber, on the other hand, looked rather unconcerned by the danger the teenagers were in. Fiddling with his tooth, he called down a piece of advice. "Look for its blind spot. Every dragon has one. Find it. Hide in it. And strike!"

All the children started to laugh as the watch the twins fight before the Nadder just as they found the blind spot. They were nearly rolling when their helmets became stuck and caused them to nearly be blasted; it was just too funny. Tryggr tried to keep his giggles down, as he could feel a coughing attack well up in his throat. He had to try and stop this ridiculous sickness.

"Blind spot? Yes. Deaf spot? Not so much. Hehe," Gobber chuckled along with the kids. He turned around briefly and gave them all a wink, reassuring them that everything was fine.

Tryggr nearly called out with excitement when Hiccup suddenly came rushing past, but managed to stop. The elder Haddock, however, only had eyes for his mentor; much to Tryggr's slight disappointment.

"Hey- hey, uh, so how would one sneak up on a Night Fury?"

Tryggr muttered a confused, "Huh?" Why was Hiccup so worried about Night Fury's? There was a Deadly Nadder right there he had to take down!

"No one's ever met one and lived to tell the tale. NOW GET IN THERE!" Gobber roared, pointing for Hiccup to get a move on.

"I know, I know... but hypothetically-"

Hiccup was cut short, distracted by Astrid. Tryggr almost rolled his eyes. Now was not the time to be distracted by his crush, after all. Only a little while later, he realised that the girl was trying to tell Hiccup to hide from the Nadder, just like she and Snotlout were doing.

"Why's he asking about Night Fury's?" asked Sygny.

"Dunno, he's just weird like that," said Adelaide.

"He's not weird!" Tryggr yelled.

"Oh yeah?" Adelaide challenged, eyeing back down in the ring pointedly. Tryggr spun around in his seat worriedly and gasped in fear.

"Hiccup! Run!" He screamed as he watched his older brother fall flat on his back after failing to roll out of the way. The shield had been too heavy. With an alarmed cry, he buried his face in his hands to cover his eyes as the dragon reared its head; he did not want to watch Hiccup get eaten.

"It's okay, lad, he's up," he heard Crab's mother reassure him with a comforting pat to the shoulder.

Trembling, Tryggr looked up again and sighed with relief. Indeed, Hiccup had managed to bolt away at the very last second.

"Get it, Snotlout!" Adelaide cheered from her own seat as her own brother stood his ground and prepared to throw his mace at the Nadder. Tryggr could not hold back his own giggles when his older cousin completely missed. How silly.

"The sun was in my eyes, Astrid!" Snotlout groaned, trying to make excuses as they both ran from the enraged dragon. "What do you want me to do? Block out the sun? I could do that, but I don't have time right now!"

Tryggr scoffed. And Adelaide called his brother weird? Hers was just plain stupid.

The children watched fearfully as the Nadder began knocking down all the walls, aiming to crush the young shield maiden. Tryggr started chewing his fingernails nervously. Perhaps dragon fighting was not all it was cracked up to be?

He was utterly stunned when Hiccup came rushing forward to stop before Gobber. What was he doing. "So... Night Fury's? Yeah. You know, they probably take the daytime off? You know, like a- like a cat! Has anyone ever seen one napping?"

Tryggr gasped in fear again. The Nadder was coming!

"Hiccup!" he screamed, pointing to the approaching beast.

Hiccup started with a shock, catching sight of his little brother. "Tiger?"

"Hiccup!" Another voice screamed, although this time it came from above. Hiccup managed to spin around just in time before Astrid slammed on top of him, nearly crushing the skinny boy. It was lucky his shield had been there to catch the axe before it hurt him.

Despite the terrifying situation, Tryggr gave a giggle. Hiccup finally got a hug from Astrid!

"Ooh! Love on the battlefield!" Tuffnut teased from behind a fallen wall.

"She could do better," Ruffnut replied rather loudly. Tryggr wanted to scowl, but he was too busy keeping an eye on the quickly approaching Nadder. It was going to kill them all!

"Quick! Quick!" He leapt up from his seat, and Gobber had to snatch him by the back of his vest to prevent him from falling through the bars. "It's gonna get them!" Tryggr yelled, utterly and completely terrified for his brother.

It was lucky Astrid had spotted the fast approaching problem too. Just as Gobber had previously advised, quickly and lightly on both her feet and train of thought, she snagged the shield off of Hiccup's arm with great difficulty, having to use Hiccup's face as a support to pull the wooden contraption off in time. Deadly as the Nadder, she spun around and slammed the shield in the dragons face, earning a squawk of pain and causing the beast to retreat – literally licking its wounds.

Tryggr could feel Gobber's sigh of relief. "Well done, Astrid."

Revelling in the moment, Tryggr released his own cheer. "Yay, Astrid!" She had saved him! She had saved his brother!

A sudden snarl from the saviour caused Tryggr to freeze in fear. Astrid whirled around to face Hiccup's form, still instinctively curled around himself for protection like a hedgehog. Tryggr swallowed nervously. She looked really, really mad...

"What the hell were you thinking?" she screamed. "What did I tell you yesterday? About knowing your place? Guess what, Hiccup? Our parents war is about to become ours! So you better figure out your own placement in it for starters!"

Tryggr did not like this Astrid. He preferred the one who had carried him home and the one who had smiled; not this one with a snarl and brandishing a giant axe, threatening to chop off Hiccup's head. Where did his favourite Astrid go?

He watched worriedly as Hiccup finally detached his grip from all limbs and sit up very slowly. It was awful. Snotlout scoffed and rolled his eyes before following Astrid. Fishlegs stood to the sidelines, fiddling with his shield and refusing to make eye contact with the gangly teen. The twins shook their heads. "Not cool, man," muttered Tuffnut.

Still shaking with adrenaline and fear, Hiccup lifted his gaze, only to lock eyes with Gobber's disapproving glance and then with the confused and worried one of the little boy. Tryggr had never seen his big brother look so embarrassed or heartbroken.

"Class dismissed," Gobber called down to the teenagers. "But ah want ye all back here tonight for a group meetin'. Don't forget!"

One by one, the teenage dragon fighters relaxed and slumped against the splintered and wrecked walls, contemplating about the events of their second training session. Hiccup only rested his chin upon his knees, his brow narrowed in concentration and controlled emotion.

"You lot should get goin'," advised Gobber, turning to face the group of curious children. Everyone except for Tryggr pouted and groaned in defiance. Crab's mother began to usher them all out quickly, agreeing that they had seen enough for the morning.

Tryggr also agreed whole heartedly. That had been both terrifying and depressing at the same time.

"It was shorter than what I thought it would be," said Steinn once they all made it back to the village. Crab's mother had at last left them to their own business and playtime. None of them felt like playing. They were too annoyed. They wanted to see more dragon training and be more involved. Tryggr did not. Really, all he wanted was to go back to bed, to be with his dragon toy, have a nice, hot mug of yak milk and have Hiccup tell him a story and say that he was going to be so much better in training. Nothing at all like he had been that morning. He had done nothing. He had almost gotten himself killed right before Tryggr's own eyes... twice!

The little boy did not like that at all.

"I know! That sucked!" Olaf scowled. "We could have done better!"

"It would have been better if Hiccup hadn't been there," said Adelaide. "He always messes everything up! That's what Daddy and Snotlout says!"

"No he doesn't!" Tryggr yelled at her, fighting back another coughing fit.

"He was like a big chicken! Did you see the way he got crushed by a girl!"

All the children laughed at the memory. Tryggr's fists were shaking. "He didn't mean to!"

"Well at least my brother could fight the dragon!"

"He missed! He was being too stupid making Astrid like him!"

"Snotlout wasn't being a chicken though!"

"He was stupid! You're stupid!"

"Bok! Bok! Bok!"

That was all it took for little fists to go flying.

Soon, the children gathered around Tryggr's and Adelaide's rolling forms as they swung at each other – kicking, punching and biting at all the skin they could reach. "Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!" They chanted loudly, gaining the attention of several passers.

"Take it back!" Tryggr screamed, pulling on one of Adelaide's braids.

"You called Snotlout stupid!" Adelaide screamed back, kicking Tryggr in the stomach.

"You called Hiccup a chicken!"

"He is!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"IS NOT!"

"IT TOO!"

They both yelled and continued their fight while the kids cheered. The adults only observed warily, just in case it got out of hand. They were only children. It was good for them to fight and gain a bit of toughness in their youth. It made them better Vikings in the future.

Unfortunately, two Vikings did not seem to think so.

"ADELAIDE!"

"TRYGGR!"

Tryggr screeched angrily as he was suddenly pulled away from his opponent, and continued to swing his feet and hands. He nearly succeeded in leaping back into the action – his restrainer was not very strong.

Adelaide's, on the other hand, was.

* * *

><p>"I totally had that Nadder right where I wanted it!" Snotlout yelled angrily, glaring at the two snickering twins. Hiccup only rolled his eyes, and slowed his pace even more, just in case anyone had seen. Already he was several feet away from the other teens; in his opinion, a relatively safe distance. He hoped with all his might to the Gods that everyone would keep their focus on Snotlout's own embarrassing failure and ignore his own. So far, it appeared to be succeeding – but he knew in no time it would all come back onto him. It always did.<p>

"Sure, Snotlout," insisted Ruffnut, her voice drawled and drawn out dramatically. "I'm sure the Nadder thought so too."

"Yeah, judging from its laughter," added Tuffnut. The twins cackled and head butted. Hiccup tried not to scoff at the sight. One of these days, they were going to do some serious damage...Okay. Too late for that.

"Actually, dragons can't laugh," Fishlegs pointed out timidly, his short legs skidding eagerly to catch up with the others and tell them everything he knew about dragon attitudes. "They can't copy any human emotion that we know of, but they can-"

"Shut up, Fishlegs!" Snotlout, Ruffnut and Tuffnut yelled, clamping their hands over their ears.

Hiccup struggled to hold back a laugh as he wondered how much of Fishlegs' babbling they all had to suffer. He had once known the pain- no, it actually had not been a pain, Hiccup realised with a sullen frown. He had enjoyed it. Back when they were kids, he and Fishlegs had been rather close friends, both with equally great imaginations and games to play on their own. He missed it. He missed being involved in banter. Almost as much as he missed those afternoons with Astrid.

The young shield-maiden still had not spoken a word since they all left the arena; still furious and shaken from nearly being killed by the Nadder because of Hiccup's foolishness. It hurt, but he knew he deserved the cold shoulder.

He could not help but be distracted by thoughts of the wounded Night Fury in the hidden cove. He just could not understand how they were so unknown to Vikings – there was almost nothing about them, other than to kiss your butt goodbye if you were ever to come near one. He tried to slow his pace a bit more as he contemplated his thoughts and ideas. He had to go back. He had to see that Night Fury again. He had to-

"Oh cool, a fight!"

Hiccup's head snapped up in alarm and curiosity at Tuffnut's exclamation. Fights were not uncommon on Berk – but they were nonetheless frightening. Big, burly Vikings with muscles that could rip off dragon limbs in the blink of an eye brawling in the middle of the village were not a light thing to step around. Normally, during these circumstances, Hiccup would high tail it away from the area of commotion. Knowing his luck, he would probably get in the way and end of hurt or dead. Most likely the latter. Not to mention have the blame placed on him in some form or manner.

"Eh, it's just some kids," said Ruffnut, giving a shrug. "Not that fun."

"Come on! Little shrimps tearing into each other for glory? How is that not fun to watch?" Tuffnut asked in disbelief, quickening his pace to reach the scene. Ruffnut hurried after him.

Hiccup was surprised to find that Snotlout remained behind with Astrid and Fishlegs. Normally he was the first to follow the twins into excitement. Instead, the burly teen had stopped his brisk walk and leant forward, squinting at the circle of kids gathered around two screaming and kicking ones.

"Hang on a sec..." Snotlout murmured.

""Hey, isn't that-"

"ADELAIDE!" Snotlout yelled, cutting off Fishlegs. Not a second later, he bolted like a wild yak.

Hiccup paled; spotting a shock of red hair upon one of the fighting children.

Oh gods...

"TRYGGR!" Hiccup yelled, though with more terror unlike Snotlout's fury. Without bothering to apologise, he shoved past Astrid and Fishlegs and sprinted towards the fight as fast as his gangly legs could carry him.

Because of his natural speed, he reached the fight at the same time as Snotlout. Simultaneously, the two teens grabbed their respectful sibling and yanked them away from each other. Hiccup had a lot more difficulty holding onto his shrieking and flailing brother that Snotlout did with his sister; he nearly lost his grip on Tryggr three times before he snapped again.

"Tryggr! Stop!"

"Lemme go!"

"I mean it!"

"I SAID STOP!"

Tryggr was not the only one who froze in shock. Hiccup only very rarely rose his voice, and it was always a surprise when he did – who would have thought a fishbone could yell so loudly when it wanted to? It always did the trick though. Tryggr immediately stilled – still scowling, but still.

Hiccup took a deep breath to calm himself. "Tryggr, what-?"

"What does your brother think he's doing?"

Now Hiccup was the one who froze, though this time it was out of fear rather than shock. He raised his gaze away from his little brother only to meet Snotlout's furious, burning glare. To his side, restrained by only a hand, Adelaide stood with her arms crossed and a big scowl etched across her face. A wonderfully shining bruise was already forming on her lower chin. Perfect.

"Get behind me," Hiccup quickly muttered, standing in front of Tryggr, ignoring his protesting: "Hey!"

Snotlout advanced. "What, you teach him to do that?"

"I- I'm sure it was just a simple misunderstanding," Hiccup stammered, making sure he had Tryggr covered as much as possible. It was a failed attempt, as he himself was small to begin with. "Just kids being kids!"

"She has bruises! And your feral rat bit her!"

"Well... yeah. But he's got some marks too! Come on, Snotlout; like you never fought when-"

"Oh! So now your suggesting it's my fault?"

Desperately, Hiccup glanced around, hoping that someone would step in and intervene the argument. There was no such luck. Most of the villagers had gone back to their own work now that the real excitement was over; there was nothing too special about watching him being cornered like a trapped animal. It was just Hiccup causing a hiccup; as per norm. The other teens stood to the side – the twins were chanting for another fight to break out and Fishlegs and Astrid watched on, half with wariness, half curious to how it was going to play out

"Lemme at 'im!" Tryggr yelled, trying to push past Hiccup. The adrenaline pounding through his small frame allowed the older boy to keep his brother at bay and prevent any more unnecessary fights. First the puddles and now this. The child just could not keep himself out of trouble.

Hiccup really had to apologise to his father for his own youth.

"Snotlout, look, it's all messed up. Let's just-"

"You got that right, Useless!" Snotlout yelled. "That's all you and your flea are ever good at: messing everything up! This is what happens when you're left in charge of anything," he said, staring at Hiccup but pointing to Tryggr.

Hiccup's lips curled worriedly. Snotlout was hitting very close to a sensitive nerve.

"Snotlout, please. Let's fix the matter at hand!"

"You know none of this would have happened if your Dad actually watched him more instead of letting him tail you like some lost mutt."

"Hey, this is not-"

Snotlout gave a cruel smirk. "Then again, none of this would have happened if you hadn't messed up and led your dear Mummy to-"

"Tryggr, apologise!" Hiccup yelled, feeling his heart swell with unbearable panic and fear. The boy did not know. The boy would never know. He could not know.

Tryggr scoffed. "Are you serious?"

"I said apologise! Now!"

Scowling and pouting with all the might his little face could muster, Tryggr turned away from Hiccup to face his body towards Adelaide. He avoided eye contact though. "Sorry for hitting you," he grumbled.

Hiccup sighed. Good enough.

"Okay, it's all settled," he said slowly, trying to bring down the levels of anger. "Please, just... we'll go now. Okay?"

"No, I think we'll go," said Snotlout, snatching Adelaide's hand again. "C'mon; let's go home."

Hiccup watched as the teens all left one by one. First Snotlout dragging his sister away, soon followed by Fishlegs scampering away from the scene of the outburst. The twins were the next to leave, grumbling about the fight ending so soon without any spilt blood. Astrid was last, having made eye contact with Hiccup briefly; her eyes were still burning with anger and annoyance, but for a brief moment Hiccup caught a glimmer of pity before she shook her head and turned around and stalked away.

Just like that, he was all alone again. Just like he always was.

"I could have taken him," Tryggr grumbled from behind.

The grief, fear and fury buried deep within him suddenly came bubbling to the surface, like molten lava. Unable to contain the oncoming blast, Hiccup whirled around to face his little brother who quickly shrunk back, terrified by Hiccup's glare.

"What in Thor's name were you thinking?" Hiccup yelled, his arms waving around more than they usually did when he talked. "Picking a fight with another kid? Really, Tryggr?"

"I- She was-"

"I don't care what she did! I care about what you did! You know that was wrong!"

"I was helping you!"

That had Hiccup stumped for a moment. "I- what?"

"She kept on calling you weird, because of what you did in training," Tryggr tried to explain as he determinedly kept his eyes locked with Hiccup even though his bottom lip was quivering. "She said that you always messed up and that you were a chicken! I was just trying to stop her!"

The innocence of Tryggr's defence hurt Hiccup more than anything. Now, it was not the initial emotions of the moment surface. Cracks were beginning to form, leaking an anger and pain from long years of misery.

"Hitting her would not have stopped her. Fighting wouldn't have stopped anything! Nothing will stop it, Tryggr! I don't know why you keep seeing me as this great almighty being, because I'm not! I am weird! I am a chicken! I do mess everything up! I can't do anything right! I can't even kill a dragon if my life depended on it! I'm weak! I'm useless! I'm a hiccup!"

Tryggr was frozen. "...but I don't-"

"You know what? Just... don't!" Hiccup snapped, feeling the heat on his emotional onslaught take its toll. Self consciously, he looked around. People were staring. Too many eyes... too many expectations... Especially from the single green pair that were welling up in his little brother's eyes. He expected too much from his pathetically useless brother.

"I'm going for a walk," grumbled Hiccup, waving a hand aside to stop Tryggr from following him. He had to get away. He had to clear his head. Too many things were spinning around.

"_Why can't you follow the simplest orders...?"_

"_I've never seen anyone mess up that badly...!"_

"_Excuse me, barmaid! I'm afraid you brought me the wrong offspring...!"_

"_It's what's inside he can't stand..."_

"_Where did Hiccup go wrong...?"_

"_None of this would have happened if you hadn't messed up...!"_

"_She kept on calling you weird..."_

"_Figure out which side you're on...!"_

Huh. Maybe that was not such a bad thing to be considering. Perhaps another visit to the Cove will help clear his mind... or at least give him a good rush of adrenaline to forget everything for a moment. All he had to do now was find a fish and a shield...

* * *

><p><em>So yeah :( Not so much of a fluffy chapter as they usually are :( but *spoilers* don't freak... tons of fluff awaits in the next chapter XD<em>

_I'll do my best not to take so long this time! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!_

_Please favourite and review and let me know what you think! It would mean the world to me and make my day :)_


	6. Lessons Learned

_Hi everybody. I know it's been forever, but I've still uploaded! LIke I said, I want this story t continue just as much as some of you guys want! I'm so excited for the future of this story. I'm mostly trying to get my life under control - especially with my really demanding job :P; and it was going well for a while until I was really distracted by events, such as a terrorist attack that happened in my city and x-mas and recently, the new year (btw, Happy - late - Snoggletog, and Happy New Year!). Now I'm back and kicking! I'm hoping to be better in updates from now :)_

_Anyway... replies!_

_NotOfThisWorld4GM: Aww, thanks, that really means alot to me :) And lol, here's hoping Snotlout and Adelaide don't cause much more trouble (smirks to self)_

_Apply123: ...i updated finally :) Here ya go. A bit later than promised, but here!_

_and yeah... thats all I have to say. Sorry for lateness and hugs for you all because you are just awesome and make my day so much brighter._

_Enough jibber jabber from lil' ol me. READ ON!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Six<strong>

Tryggr was in complete shock. All he could do was stand in the very same spot Hiccup left him in, clenching his fists determinedly, trying to steady his breathing, blink always the stinging in his eyes and try to calm his fluttering heart. Never – not once in his short five years did he ever see Hiccup so mad or be yelled at in such a manner. It was a frightening change from something he was so used to, and he knew one thing for sure; he did not like it.

_Don't cry… Vikings don't cry… That's what Daddy always says… Don't cry…_

A low whistle interrupted Tryggr's inner chant, and he gave a gasp as he stared up from the ground to find Gobber just a little ways off. The blacksmith was watching something in the distance; most likely Hiccup running off.

"Well, there's somethin' ye don' see every day," he said. "Who woulda thought a wee thing like that could make such a ruckus?"

Tryggr chose not to say anything and instead recited his inner chant again. He looked away from Gobber, hoping that the tears would not be spotted. After all, that would not be very Viking like.

"Ye all right, laddie?"

No. No he was not. All at once, he crumbled away from his built up shell and became exactly what he was: a frightened and deeply upset child. Before he knew it, he started to cry and covered his face, hoping that no one would see him and think he was being a weak Viking; but he could not stop the hiccupping sobs that burst deeply from within his chest.

For a brief second, he felt a large hand on his shoulder and instinctively reached for the arm connected to it, seeking comfort and protection. Within seconds, he was lifted up and soon he was burying his face in a fur covered shoulder, still crying his eyes out.

"Ah, come on, little one. Let's get you outta here." Tryggr quickly recognised Gobber's low tone and felt the man take long, but limping, strides away from the spot he had been left in. He huddled in closer to Gobber's shoulder, feeling utterly miserable.

Suddenly, he was overcome with a rush of warmth and realised that they had arrived in the forge. Forgetting his misery for a brief second, Tryggr glanced up curiously and with a bit of excitement. On normal circumstances, he was rarely allowed in the forge – it was a place for grown-ups, Gobber and Daddy had told him… well, and Hiccup too; but he was in training there so he was allowed. Too many sharp things, too many objects that could burn the flesh off his bone in a blink of an eye (although Tryggr remembered the glare Hiccup had given when Gobber told him that one and told him later that the burns did hurt a lot, but you were always left in one piece), too many things that could hurt him if he was not careful. Being allowed in the forge was a rare thing indeed. Stoick and Hiccup would have gone berserk if they ever knew. The thought made Tryggr sigh sadly. Hiccup probably would not care anymore.

Gobber set him down on his feet again and left him for a second to gather something. Much to his surprise, Tryggr was handed a few sheets of parchment and a stick of charcoal and was directed to a stool in the corner. "Here ye are, keep yerself busy fer a while," said Gobber as he helped the young boy up onto the seat before making his way over to collect a withered sword in desperate need of repairs.

Tryggr was somewhat pleased. He liked drawing, but he just was not in the mood. He was still deeply upset and he sniffled a few times before deciding to draw a few stripes on the page. He was not too sure on what he was drawing just yet, but he hoped it would turn into something good.

Tryggr continued to cry a bit and sniff away his sadness, but he was soon calmed by his environments. The banging of steel on steel which Gobber was causing turned into a rhythmic sort of tune, unusually soothing; and not to mention the warmth of the furnace which battled the freeing air outside. The boy doodled a few lines on the sheet of parchment, unconsciously turning them into four people all holding hands. It was nothing impressive, nothing at all like the wonderful sketches Hiccup could draw, but they were recognisable. The one on the far left soon turned into a rather large stick figure with a beard and helmet, his large and funny looking five-fingered stick hands connected to that of a smaller stick figure, this one with a sort of funny looking vest which was connected to an even smaller figure with a big smile on his face as he held the hand of the last stick figure; this time, a woman, with long hair.

It was simple, something that should have made him happy, but turned him miserable. They would all never be happy again, especially Hiccup; not after that fight.

"He hates me," Tryggr murmured, wiping at his clogged nose with a loud sniff.

"Who does?" asked Gobber, pausing his clanging.

"Hiccup."

"No he don't."

"Yes he does. He was really angry with me."

"Yer brother loves ya more than anything in the world. I don't think a bit of shoutin' will stop him now."

"Then why was he so mad with me?" Tryggr whined, wiping his nose noisily on his sleeve. "He's never been that angry."

Gobber paused for a moment and stared over at the child with a thoughtful glance. A second later, he held up a finger and moved towards the bin of metal scraps, from which he withdrew a thin, metal rod. Tryggr frowned in curiosity, wondering what on earth the blacksmith was doing.

"Ye see this rod?" Gobber asked, holding the object up clearly for him to see.

Tryggr nodded.

Gobber passed it over to the boy and nodded. "Go on, try bending it. Break it!"

Tryggr's frown deepened with confusion, but did as he was told. He took the rod between his two hands and tried to bend it inwards, and huffed with the effort. It was only a small rod though; he was sure he could do it. Yet no matter how many times he banged and clanged and twisted and pulled, it did not shift.

"I can't," said Tryggr lowly, admitting defeat.

"Yeah, not as easy as it looks, huh?" Gobber took back the rod. "It's a thin piece of metal, deceivin' to the eye and tougher than ye think, eh?"

Tryggr nodded again.

"Don' be so hard on yerself. Ye never know; that wee bi' of pressure might have actually done the trick. It could already be weakened, and will only become weaker if we apply more." Without further warning, Gobber placed the rod on top of the anvil where he had been forging the sword and took his hammer to it; softly at first, and then harder and harder. Tryggr watched with confusion and fascination as the rod began to bend against its will quicker with every hit. It was taken so much damage, Tryggr was sure it would break.

"Sometimes, it'll only take one, small hit before-" Gobber barely raised his hammer before dealing the final blow – "Snap!"

The rod broke in clean two halves

Tryggr tilted his head and sniffled again, giving a small cough afterwards. "I don't get it."

"Imagine that Hiccup is like the rod."

Trggr gasped. "You're gonna hammer him in two?"

Gobber nearly roared with laughter at the exclamation. "No, no, no, ye cheeky bugger. We're not gonna go beat him up 'till he breaks like a toothpick. It's more of a statement to his mind."

"His head's gonna break?"

"Look here, Tryggr," said Gobber, speaking softly and fully turning around to face the child on his stool. "Hiccup's got a lot of pressure on 'im too. Maybe not just like tha' rod, but it affects 'im just the same. He's gonna be chief someday, he's gotta live up to yer father's heights and expectations, not to mention the village, he's gotta stop being all… that. And it ain't easy.

"Ye know 'im. He's not the same as us. He's all brain and no brawn; brilliant sometimes, but not normal. He's like tha' rod 'cause he feels the pressure every day, think of it as one bang every sunset. It was only a matter of time before he snapped, really."

Tryggr's lips formed a perfect circle. "Oohhh."

"He was just scared fer ya," Gobber continued. "Ye could'a gotten hurt there, and it wouldn't 'ave surprised me if that ruddy Snotlout tried ta take a swing."

"I could have-!"

"No, ye couldn't, Tryggr. Despite what ye think, yer a lot smaller than he is – and that thickhead is all muscle. He could'a hurt ye, and Hiccup would'a known he couldn't 'ave done a thing except jump in the way. He's not as strong as the other kids. Ye were both lucky."

"But Hiccup's not scared of anything! Unless Daddy's angry – but everyone's scared of that."

Gobber chuckled. "Not ol' Gobber, yer Daddy can't give me the willies," he teased, poking Tryggr in the side, causing the child to laugh, which soon turned into a hacking cough.

Gobber frowned at the sound and was silent for a while in deep thought before continuing. "And who say's Hiccup's not scared of anything?"

Tryggr fiddled with his fingers. "Cause he isn't?" He made it sound like a question almost, very unsure now that Gobber brought it up. It could not be possible though. Hiccup was never scared. He always pulled funny faces and said funny things, he was the one who made Tryggr feel safe, just like Stoick.

Gobber looked around dramatically for the child, making sure no one was around. When he determined the coast to be clear, he motioned for Tryggr to lean in. The boy did so, very curious about whatever secret the blacksmith was about to reveal to him.

"Did ye know he was scared of dragons?"

Tryggr gasped. "No way!"

"Oh, terrified. Nothin' could calm 'im during a raid when he was a wee lad. Now that I think about it, he still flinches now an' then. Mighta had somethin' ta do with 'im nearly being killed by one as a babe-"

"What?"

"But we're still not too sure; might not 'ave 'elped when I told 'im about how I lost my arm and leg. He was also afraid of trolls at one point."

"Trolls aren't real, Gobber," Tryggr giggled.

"They are too! They steal yer left socks when ye aren't lookin'!"

"You only have your left foot."

"Watch yer cheek," Gobber lightly scolded, poking the boy's side again, earning a fit of giggles. "Now, let's see here. He was scared of sleeping alone fer a while – Stoick was always complainin' about tha' in the early days. He was scared of eels – always freaked out whenever it was put on 'is plate fer dinner. He panics whenever he sees Astrid and always fiddles with his hair and cloths until I whack 'im. He's scared of running into Snotlout and the twins. He's scared of not being able to make yer father happy. He's scared you might get hurt."

"He is?"

"Yer 'is little brother; of course he is! Like I said, loves ye more than anythin' in the world. He'd be terrified to loose ye. And he must know it's the same thing other way 'round."

Tryggr was confused again. "Huh?"

"That's why he yelled at ye; it's why a lot of us yell and get angry with people who we love. 'Cause we know they'll always be the first ones to forgive us."

Tryggr felt like he was finally understanding. "So… Hiccup's not angry with me?"

"Well, ye did pick a fight with yer cousin, so of course he'll be mad with ye, but it won't last. I gotta feelin' though most of that anger was because of his performance in the ring today."

"Why did he do all those things?" asked Tryggr, crossing his arms with a huff. "He wasn't fighting the dragon at all!"

Gobber only sighed and shrugged. "I dunno, laddie. Who knows what's goin' on in tha' head of his. I'm sure he'll pick up his game later, once he's a bit more focused at the task at hand."

"Oh. Well, maybe-" Tryggr broke off suddenly, erupting into anouther coughing fit. Gobber deeply frowned, now finding reason for concern.

"Ye've bin doin' tha' a lot. Are ye alright?"

Tryggr sniffed and wiped his nose. "I might be sick. I wasn't feeling good this morning."

Briefly, Gobber pressed his hand onto Tryggr's forehead and frowned. "I think ye may be comin' down with somethin' there. Did ye let anyone know?"

"No."

The blacksmith gave a heavy sigh and patted the small child on the back lightly. "C'mon then, let's get ye back home for some rest; otherwise I'll be the one in trouble."

For once, Tryggr did not protest. Instead, he only gave a quiet nod and sniffled again. He really was not feeling very well now; it was much worse than he had felt this morning. He just wanted to go home and go back to bed. Hopefully if Hiccup was home he could make some of that tea that always made him feel better…

He followed Gobber up the hill sluggishly, clutching onto the older Viking's tunic for guidance and support with one hand and constantly wiping away his sniffles with the other. He wanted to cry. It was such a long walk, and he was tired, sore and sick. He just wanted to be home immediately. He remained quiet, however, and managed to make it to his hut at the slow pace; and he realised in that moment he had never been so grateful or hopeful about the idea of going back to bed.

"All right, ye little mite. In we go," Gobber ushered once they reached the front door, and nudged Tryggr to go inside first. He did just that, and looked around hopefully. The fire had not been lit. Tryggr slumped despairingly. Hiccup had not come home yet.

Gobber must have realised the same thing, for he clapped a reassuring hand on Tryggr's shoulder. "I'm sure he'll be here soon. He can't have gone too far. Now, do ye need anythin'?"

Tryggr coughed slightly and shook his head.

"Okay, just head on up to bed, and I'll see if I can find that fishbone of a brother of yer's."

Tryggr had no energy to laugh. He only gave a small nod and trudged up the stairs to his and Hiccup's loft. He really hoped that Hiccup would be back soon… it was nearly sunset.

* * *

><p>He… he did it!<p>

That was amazing! Incredible! Fantastic! Did he already say amazing? Hiccup really could not have cared less. He had somewhat gained the trust of a Night Fury. A Night Fury! A real, live Night Fury! A Night Fury that was toothless, and had barfed up fish for him to eat, who slept upside down and liked to draw patterns in the dirt too. Hiccup just could not believe it… a Night Fury… Of all creatures…

Hiccup could had ran all the way home to expel his buzzing excitement and happiness of the moment, but instead he walked along the foot trodden path slowly and calmly; taking in all the scenery and just enjoying the moment of pure peace. That had to be one of the best afternoons of his life – no… _experience_ of his whole life.

In that second, Hiccup knew he had to go back. He had to see the Night Fury again… He really could not continue to call the Night Fury 'Night Fury'… Blacky? Strike? Midnight? Fish? Bat? Sticks? What would he name a toothless dragon? Hey! Toothless! Hiccup silently grinned to himself and tried not to laugh. That was an appropriate name. After all, technically it had been the first thing he had called the dragon. Toothless the Night Fury.

Now, he realised with a sudden afterthought, what was he going to do about it?

It could not fly, that much was obvious. Was it perhaps trapped down in the Cove forever? Would he had to come back every day to feed it and keep it company like a pet? Hiccup wrinkled his nose in distaste. He was not too sure whether he liked the thought. The beast was a powerful and magnificent creature, extremely intelligent and deadly – nothing at all like a young and friendly yak or sheep. He would have to think more about what to do with Toothless the Night Fury.

As he neared the village, Hiccup was suddenly overcome with another wave of thoughts. Would he tell anyone? He knew for sure he could not tell any of his fellow villagers or peers; they were out of the questions. Besides, who would want to listen to him and believe his tale in the first place? His father was one hundred and ten per cent out of the question; Toothless would have an axe buried in his head before Hiccup could scream 'get down!' Gobber? …no. Too much of a risk. His mentor was like a father to him in so many ways and one of his closest friends, but even he would never come to understand his desire to make contact with the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Tryggr? Maybe. He would have to think on that one. He knew his little brother would never judge him for it; he would probably be excited by the idea. It was the question of whether or not the child could keep a secret like that. He could often become very boastful around his friends and-

Hiccup froze mid-step and groaned. Tryggr. He had completely forgotten about him… and their fight. Well, the trip to the cove had certainly done the trick to serve as a distraction until now. Hiccup took a deep breath and continued walking towards the Great Hall. He really messed it up this time. One of the very few people on the island who genuinely liked him, heck, even loved him, and he had pushed them away. He needed to sort everything out… after finding a suitable punishment for starting a fight. He could not let that go; Tryggr could not continue on thinking that it was a perfectly fine thing to do without any consequence.

Hiccup just hoped that Tryggr would be in the mood to talk at least. He really did not want to break another family bond and have the guilt on his hands. He had too much of that already…

Hiccup dashed up the stairs quickly to reach the Hall, and luckily did not trip over any as he went. Briefly, he peeked around nervously for any sign of the teens, especially Astrid – she was sure to still be mad at him – but soon calmed himself. They were all most likely making their way up to the Kill Ring for the group meeting Gobber had called for. He should have been making his own way there by now and was sure to be late, but he had to find Tryggr first and take care of him first. Surely GObber would understand.

For a minute, Hiccup stood in confusion and wariness as he glanced around the Great Hall, keeping an eye out for a small, red haired boy. There was no such colour and size to be found. Tryggr was not in the Hall. Now panicking slightly, Hiccup glanced out the crack of the doors – it was definitely sundown. Tryggr had to be here. He was always here. He always kept his promise to Hiccup. He should be here…

Hiccup gave a shaky sigh. He really messed it up this time.

After one more final glance, Hiccup retreated from the Great Hall and dashed down the stairs briefly to reach his hut. Tryggr had to be here. It was the only other place… he hoped. He tried to calm his racing heart as he made it to the front door, but too many possibilities were racing through his mind. Tryggr was always at the Great Hall by sundown. What if he was hurt? What if he had run away? What if he was lost? What if he was hiding? What if Hiccup could never find him and the boy either starved, froze or was carried off by-

Hiccup shook his head to rid himself of the dreaded possibilities and walked inside. "Tryggr? You in here?" Hiccup called out loudly, but calmly, as he did not want to freak out the boy if he was here and still angry or sad. Plus, it helped him to remain calm overall. Tryggr had to be okay. He had to be-

A small cough from upstairs caught his attention.

"Hiccup?" Tryggr's voice, tiny and croaky, called down in response.

Hiccup released a sigh he had not realised he had been holding. He was okay. He was here. Not wasting another second, he rushed up the stairs on all four limbs, as per usual. "Where were you?" Hiccup lightly scolded as he reached the top. "I told you to meet me at the Great Hall by sundown! You had me worried! I thought-"

It was only in that second Hiccup realised Tryggr had curled himself up into a ball in his bed and was not making any effort to sit himself up to acknowledge his older brother. He swallowed nervously, preparing himself for what he knew was going to be a long discussion.

"Look, buddy, I'm sorry I yelled at you; but you gotta know you really did the wrong thing back there by picking a fight."

"Yeah, Gobber told me," Tryggr murmured, rolling over to finally face Hiccup.

Hiccup frowned. "Oh really?" _Thank you, Gobber_, he thought with dry sarcasm as his mind came up with all the different possibilities of what his mentor could have told the young Viking. Maybe he needed to talk to Gobber instead about everything. "What exactly did Gobber tell you?"

"That you were just scared, angry but not angry at the same time, and that you were a rod."

The last comment threw Hiccup. _A rod? What in Thor's name…?_

Tryggr sniffled, and the older boy panicked, thinking that the child was crying. "I'm sorry for fighting and for making you angry."

Hiccup could not help but crack a small smile, despite trying to keep up a sort of stern demeanour; glad that nothing had really changed. It was just a fight, nothing that would stop anything. "You devil. You know I can't stay mad for too long."

"Yeah. Otherwise you'd turn into a troll."

Hiccup was about to retort, but a second and much longer glance over his little brother's features wiped his mind completely. Something was not right. His face was too flushed to be merely upset, and his nose was running but his eyes were not. "You okay, Tiger?"

Tryggr sniffled again and curled up even more. "Sick," he whimpered, giving a small cough shortly afterwards.

Hiccup sighed and approached Tryggr's bedside, feeling the young boy's forehead as he sat on the edge of the wooden pallet. "I told you this would happen. This is why you need to listen."

"But Daddy says Viking's don't-"

"Yeah, well Dad's as padded as a Gronkle and stronger than one. Come to think of it, more thick headed too. You're merely a chew toy for a Terrible Terror. You can get sick."

"I thought you were the chew toy?"

"I'm their toothpick. There's a difference."

Tryggr giggled, but it soon turned into a hacking, chest deep cough that Hiccup did not like at all. It was too croaky and deep, like the child would spew up a lung if he continued. He was hot too. His forehead was causing Hiccup's hand to sweat slightly. The signs were not good at all. Despite what 'Daddy' and other Viking's said, sickness for such a young child was not a subject to be taken lightly. On Berk, like most things there, sickness could be deadly. From experiencing the very bridge between the two worlds himself as small and sickly child, Hiccup knew it was all too true. To this day, he was still astonished he was even alive – and he was sure his father still was too.

"Sit up," ordered Hiccup, moving Tryggr's pillows properly to keep to the boy upright.

Tryggr groaned. "Wanna lie down," he complained.

"You can't breathe properly. Let me get you some tea," said Hiccup, immediately leaving for downstairs straight afterwards.

Like an out of control typhoon, Hiccup dashed about their main living quarters, searching for the herbs and honey that were a part of his usual remedy for colds. They always helped, he reasoned with himself, so why would they not make any difference now? This could not be another thing he would screw up. Dragon training and raids? Yes. He was not cut out for that. Looking after his sick little brother? Out of the question. Failure was not an option.

Nearly ten minutes later, Hiccup was making his way back up to his and Tryggr's loft, holding a steaming cup of herbs, honey and water. "Here you go, Tiger. Drink up. I promise it's better than Astrid's."

Tryggr's eyes brightened up at the very sight of the cup and he eagerly took it, sipping very carefully so he would not accidently bur himself. "Thank you," he croaked after the third sip.

Hiccup smiled, but frowned once again upon feeling Tryggr's forehead. He did not like the temperature at all. He realised in a heartbeat he could not stay for the training meeting down at the Kill Ring. He had to let Gobber know.

"Tryggr, I need to do something real quick, okay? You gonna be fine on your own for about half an hour?"

Tryggr nodded, still intently sipping his drink. His eyes were drooping, alerting Hiccup to the notion that the boy would send himself to sleep in the meantime. He had nothing to worry about. Somewhat satisfied, he ruffled the child's hair affectionately and dashed down the stairs again and nearly ran out the front door. As sure as he was that Tryggr would be fine, Hiccup did not fancy the idea of leaving the sick boy on his own for too long.

Gods. How long had he been on his own like that? Hiccup wanted to hit himself. He was so stupid. Staying in that cove because of the Night Fury when his little brother needed him more. Now he wanted to hit himself. With Tryggr sick, how was he going to take care of Toothless? He was pulling himself in circles. Too many responsibilities.

Making Dad happy, staying out of trouble, dragon training, Toothless, looking after Tryggr, now a sick little brother…

Hiccup wanted to scowl up at the Gods as he made his way over the bridge. How much more did they want from him as payment for his pathetic runt-ness? For his mistake? For killing his mother?

"…and with one twist, he took my hand and swallowed it whole!"

Hiccup glanced upwards when he came close to the Kill Ring upon hearing the familiar voice… and all too familiar tale. He gave a heavy sigh, realising he had to trek it all the way up to the watch post where the others were clearly having their meeting. At this rate, he was going to be more exhausted than Tryggr by the time he got back. It had already taken him about fifteen minutes to get to point B from his house; and that was while rushing.

He jogged up the stairs, listening briefly to Gobber telling the other teens of how the dragons came back to eat his leg along with his hand, and then to their awe and Fishlegs' rambling with amusement. He had heard the story too many times to even find it interesting or terrifying as it had once been when he was a child. He smirked to himself, remembering how his mother had nearly torn Gobber limb from limb when he came home in tears one day when he was six, scared witless by the idea that a dragon would come and eat him up during the night like it had done to his mentor. He had not been able to sleep without his mother and father for at least a month afterwards.

"I'm so angry right now!" He heard Snotlout growl just before he reached the top. "I'll avenge your beautiful hand, and your beautiful foot! I'll chop off the legs of every dragon I fight! With my face!"

Hiccup froze mid-step for a moment in pure bewilderment. What in the name of Thor…?

"No. It's the wings and the tails that ye really want! If it can't fly, it can't get away. A downed dragon, is a dead dragon…"

He nearly froze again, only out of horror._ A downed dragon is a dead dragon…_

"Oh, look who finally decided to show up!"

Everyone spun in their seats at Ruffnut's exclamation, and Snotlout and Tuffnut groaned. Hiccup stood at the top of the stairs, fiddling nervously with his hands upon finding too many pairs of eyes upon him, and hardly any of them were friendly either.

"Ye've really got to stop this habit, otherwise ye really will be carried off one day," Gobber half scolded, half teased. When Hiccup glanced towards him, he almost shrunk away. The older Viking's eyes were not annoyed by his lateness or curious by his arrival, but knowing. Gobber's steely gaze bore into him in almost a judgemental and challenging matter. He knew. He knew exactly what Hiccup was about to say. Suddenly the teenager wondered whether it had been such a good idea to let him know of his problem.

"I- Sorry, I didn't mean to be-"

"Hiccup."

Hiccup winced, hearing the sternness in Gobber's tone.

"Tryggr's really sick," he mumbled just loud enough for Gobber and the other teens to hear, "and I can't stay here, and I don't think I'll be able to make it to training tomorrow."

Gobber gave a nod, approving of Hiccup's statement while Snotlout and the twins sniggered at his nervousness and at the possibility he was going to get into trouble. He hardly noticed that Astrid's disapproving gaze softened for a moment in genuine concern.

"I know," said Gobber. ""I found 'im and took 'im home."

This time, Hiccup visibly shrunk under Gobber's gaze.

"I'm sor-"

"Don't say it to me, laddie. Tell it to 'im."

Hiccup suddenly found the grainy wood beneath his feet rather interesting to look at. "I know."

"Well, ye better get back to the mite then."

"So what about…"

Gobber's scolding stare at last softened. "Just focus on getting' 'im well again before e come back to trainin'. Yer father would kill us both if ye didn't."

Hiccup did not doubt that in the least. He gave Gobber a small, grateful and apologetic smile and made haste to run back down the stairs again, not giving anyone a second glance backwards. He felt guilty by how relieved he as to skip out on training because of Tryggr's sickness; but at least it was one less responsibility and pressure upon his shoulders now.

Now, the most he had to worry about was looking after both a downed dragon and his little brother.

Just as he had predicted, it took him nearly twice as long to make it back to his own home, and mentally berated himself for rushing and wearing himself out beforehand. He was grateful that most of the villagers were stuck in their own homes or in the Great Hall, because they did not have to see him fall flat on his face at one point as he ran back to his hut. He continued to push himself, determined to get back and cease his increasing worry about Tryggr. He had been left on his own for close to half an hour.

When he was merely a few wide strides away from the front door, Hiccup was greeted by the sound of harsh coughing from the upper floor, causing him to rush even quicker.

"Tryggr?" He called out loudly over the sound, making his way back up the stairs. "You okay?"

It was a stupid question. The child looked utterly miserable. Leaning over the edge of the bed and coughing non-stop with a running nose. He whimpered as he sat up, his big green eyes were welling up with distressed tears. "It hurts!"

Hiccup clucked his tongue in sympathy and moved slowly to sit down on Tryggr's bed and pulled his little brother back up to lay upright against his side. "I know, buddy, I know. We can't do much for tonight. You just need to sleep."

"I can't!"

Hiccup covered his worry with a smile. "How about a story to help?"

Tryggr's eyes lightened up with eagerness. "What kind of story?"

Hiccup chewed his lip for a second, trying to think of something on the spot. It was difficult. His mind was overrun with endless worries about Tryggr and…

_Hey…_

"Have I told you the story about the downed dragon?"

* * *

><p><em>So there ya are :) Hope you enjoyed this chapter! I'll do my best to get the next one out as soon as possible (along with another one-shot if anyone's interested)<em>

_btw, that reminds me. To those who read "His Hiccup", thank you very much for leaving faves and reviews :)_

_So, please tell me what you think in the reviews and leave a fave if you're enjoying 'Big Brother', it will mean so much to me and make my day :)_


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